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ANGLO-SAXON    COLLECTION 
THE  BEQUEST  OF 

P"OrBSSOK  OF  EJfGUCSH  LlTERATtTEE 

Df  THE  Cornell.  IIntversity 
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GAVLORD 


PRINTED  I.N  U.S.  A. 


The  original  of  tliis  book  is  in 
tine  Cornell  University  Library. 

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the  United  States  on  the  use  of  the  text. 


http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924088009067 


THE 

SAXONS   IN  ENGLAND. 

A  HISTORY  OF 

THE  ENGLISH  COMMONWEALTH 

TILL    THE   PERIOD    OP 

THE   NORMAN    CONQUEST. 

BY 

JOHN  MITCHELL  KEMBLE,  M.A.,  F.C.P.S., 

JLEMBEE  or  THE  ROYAL  ACADEMY  OF  SCIENCES  AT  anmiCH,  AND  OF  THE  EOYAL 

ACADEMY  OF  SCIEKCES  AT  BERLIN", 

FELLOTT  OF  THE  BOYAC  SOCIETY  OF  HISTOEY  IN  STOCICHOLM,  AND  OP  THE 

EOYAL  SOCIETY  OF  HISTOEY  IN  COPENHAGEN, 

ETC.   ETC.   ETC. 


'  Ifobilis  et  strenua,  iuxtaque  dotem  naturae  eagaciasima  gens  Saxonum,  &b  anticims  etiam 
scriptoribus  memorata." 


A  NEW  EDITION",  EEVISED  BY 

WALTEE  DE  GEAY  BIKCH,  F.R.S.L., 

Senior  Assistant  of  the  Department  of  Manuscripts  m  the  ^British   Museum,  Honorary 

lAbrarian  of  the  "Royal  Society  of  Literature,  Sonorary  Secretary  of  the 

British  Archisological  Association,  etc. 


VOLUME  I. 


LONDON: 
BERNARD  QUARITCH,  15  PICCADILLY. 

187(5, 


^^5(9^ 


FEINTED  BT  TATIOE  AND  EKANCIS, 
KED  LIOH  CODBT,  FLEET  STKEET. 


TO 


THE  QUEEN'S  MOST  EXCELLENT  MAJESTY, 

THIS  HISTORY 

OF  THE  PRINCIPLES  WHICH  HAVE  GIVEN  HER  EMPIRE 

ITS  PREEMINENCE 

AMONG  THE  NATIONS  OP  EUROPE, 

IS, 

WITH   HER   GRACIOUS    PERMISSION, 

INSCRIBED  BY 

THE  MOST  HUMBLE  AND  DEVOTED 

OF  HER  SERVANTS. 


PREFACE. 


The  following  pages  contain  an  account  of  the 
principles  upon  which  the  public  and  political  life 
of  our  Anglosaxon  forefathers  was  based,  and  of 
the  institutions  in  which  those  principles  were  most 
clearly  manifested.  The  subject  is  a  grave  and 
solemn  one  :  it  is  the  history  of  the  childhood  of 
our  own  age, — the  explanation  of  its  manhood. 

On  every  side  of  us  thrones  totter,  and  the  deep 
foundations  of  society  are  convulsed.  Shot  and 
shell  sweep  the  streets  of  capitals  which  have  long 
been  pointed  out  as  the  chosen  abodes  of  order: 
cavalry  and  bayonets  cannot  control  populations 
whose  loyalty  has  become  a  proverb  here,  whose 
peace  has  been  made  a  reproach  to  our  own  mis- 
called disquiet.  Yet  the  exalted  Lady  who  wields 
the  sceptre  of  these  realms,  sits  safe  upon  her 
throne,  and  fearless  in  the  holy  circle  of  her  do- 
mestic happiness,  secure  in  the  affections  of  a  peo- 
ple whose  institutions  have  given  to  them  all  the 
blessings  of  an  equal  law. 

Those  institutions  they  have  inherited  from  a 
period  so  distant  as  to  excite  our  admiration,  and 
have  preserved  amidst  all  vicissitudes  with  an  en- 


vi  PREFACE. 

lightened  will  that  must  command  our  gratitude. 
And  with  the  blessing  of  the  Almighty,  they  will 
long  continue  to  preserve  them ;  for  our  customs 
are  founded  upon  right  and  justice,  and  are  main- 
tained in  a  subjection  to  His  will  who  hath  the 
hearts  of  nations  as  well  as  of  kings  in  His  rule 
and  governance. 

It  cannot  be  without  advantage  for  us  to  learn 
how  a  State  so  favoured  as  our  own  has  set  about 
the  great  work  of  constitution,  and  solved  the 
problem,  of  uniting  the  completest  obedience  to 
the  law  with  the  greatest  amount  of  individual  free- 
dom. But  in  the  long  and  chequered  history  of 
our  State,  there  are  many  distinguishable  periods  : 
some  more  and  some  less  well  known  to  us.  Among 
those  with  which  we  are  least  familiar  is  the  oldest 
period.  It  seems  therefore  the  duty  of  those  whose 
studies  have  given  them  a  mastery  over  its  details, 
to  place  them  as  clearly  as  they  can  before  the  eyes 
of  their  fellow-citizens. 

There  have  never  been  wanting  men  who  en- 
joyed a  distinct  insight  into  the  value  of  our 
earliest  constitutional  history.  From  the  days  of 
Spelman,  and  Selden  and  Twisden,  even  to  our 
own,  this  country  has  seen  an  unbroken  succession 
of  laborious  thinkers,  who,  careless  of  self-sacrifice, 
have  devoted  themselves  to  record  the  facts  which 
were  to  be  recovered  from  the  darkness  of  the  past, 
and  to  connect  them  with  the  progress  of  our  poli- 
tical and  municipal  laws.  But  peculiar  advantages 
over  these  men,  to  whom  this  country  owes  a  large 
debt  of  gratitude,  are  now  enjoyed  by  ourselves. 


PEEFACE.  vii 

'  It  is  only  within  eight  years  that  the  "  Ancient 
Laws  and  Ecclesiastical  Institutes  "  of  the  Anglo- 
saxons  have  been  made  fully  accessible  to  us^: 
within  nine  years  only,  upwards  of  fourteen  hun- 
dred documents  containing  the  grants  of  kings 
and  bishops,  the  settlements  of  private  persons,  the 
conventions  of  landlords  and  tenants,  the  technical 
forms  of  judicial  proceedings,  have  been  placed  in 
our  hands  2;  and  to  this  last  quarter  of  a  century 
has  it  been  given  to  attain  a  mastery  never  before 
attained  over  the  language  which  our  Anglosaxon 
ancestors  spoke.  To  us  therefore  it  more  particu- 
larly belongs  to  perform  the  duty  of  illustrating 
that  period,  whose  records  are  furnished  to  us  so 
much  more  abundantly  than  they  were  to  our  pre- 
decessors ;  and  it  seemed  to  me  that  this  duty  was 
especially  imposed  upon  him  whom  circumstances 
had  made  most  familiar  with  the  charters  of  the 
Anglosaxons. 

The  history  of  our  earliest  institutions  has  come 
down  to  us  in  a  fragmentary  form :  in  a  similar  way 

'  Ancient  Laws  and  Institutes  of  England ;  comprising  Laws  en- 
acted under  the  Anglosaxon  Kings  from  ^Selbirht  to  Cnut,  with  an 
English  translation  of  the  Saxon  :  the  Laws  called  Edward  the  Con- 
fessor's ;  the  Laws  of  William  the  Conqueror,  and  those  ascribed  to 
Henry  the  First ;  also  Monumenta  Ecclesiastica  Anglicana,  from  the 
seventh  to  the  tenth  century :  and  the  ancient  Latin  version  of  the 
Anglosaxon  Laws.  With  a  copious  Glossary,  etc.  (By  B.  Thorpe,  Esq.). 
Printed  by  command  of  his  late  Majesty,  King  William  the  Fourth, 
under  the  direction  of  the  Commissioners  on  the  Public  Records  of  the 
Kingdom,  mbcccxi.. 

^  Codex  Diplomaticus  Aevi  Saxonici.  Opera  J.  M.  Kemhle,  M.A., 
vol.  i.  London,  1839  ;  vol.  ii.  1840;  vol.  iii.  1845;  vol.  iv.  1846;  vol.  v. 
1847 ;  vol.  vi.  1848.  Published  by  authority  of  the  Historical  Society 
of  England. 


viii  PEEFAOE. 

has  it  here  been  treated, — in  chapters,  or  rather 
essays,  devoted  to  each  particular  principle  or  group 
of  facts.  But  throughout  these  fragments  a  system 
is  distinctly  discernible :  accordingly  the  chapters 
will  be  found  also  to  follow  a  systematic  plan. 

It  is  my  intention,  at  a  future  period,  to  lay 
before  my  countrymen  the  continuation  of  this 
History,  embracing  the  laws  of  descent  and  pur- 
chase, the  law  of  contracts,  the  forms  of  judicial 
process,  the  family  relations,  and  the  social  con- 
dition of  the  Saxons  as  to  agriculture,  commerce, 
art,  science  and  literature.  I  believe  these  things 
to  be  worthy  of  investigation,  from  their  bearing 
upon  the  times  in  which  we  live,  much  more  than 
from  any  antiquarian  value  they  may  be  supposed 
to  possess.  We  have  a  share  in  the  past,  and  the 
past  yet  works  in  us ;  nor  can  a  patriotic  citizen 
better  serve  his  country  than  by  devoting  his  ener- 
gies and  his  time  to  record  that  which  is  great 
and  glorious  in  her  history,  for  the  admiration  and 
instruction  of  her  neighbours. 

J.  M.  K. 

London,  December  2nd,  1848. 


PREFACE 

TO  THE  NEW  EDITION. 


The  original  edition  of  this  monumental  work 
having  for  a  long  time  been  out  of  print  and  of 
enhanced  value,  a  great  demand  has  arisen  for  the 
issue  of  a  new  edition  ;  and  the  welcome  oppor- 
tunity of  amending  a  number  of  oversights  and 
typographical  errors,  and  of  verifying  a  large  num- 
ber of  references,  has  not  been  neglected.  The 
book  itself  is  of  so  standard  a  character,  and  was  so 
well  digested  in  the  first  place,  that  no  apology  is 
needed  for  its  re-publication  now — more  than  a 
quarter  of  a  century  after  its  first  appearance. 

The  principles  laid  down,  the  deductions  gathered 
from  the  array  of  recorded  facts  and  examples,  are 
as  true  and  incontrovertible  to-day  as  they  ever 
were.  The  work,  therefore,  does  not  labour  under 
the  disadvantage  of  becoming  obsolete,  inasmuch  as 
the  researches  which  have  since  been  made  in  this 
branch  of  literary  and  historical  enquiry  have  not 
tended  to  weaken  or  destroy,  but  rather  to  support 
and  strengthen,  the  arguments  applied  by  the  author 
to  the  gradual  unfolding  of  his  theories  of  the 
growth  and  consolidation  of  the  Anglosaxon  Com- 
monwealth, and  the  Eoyal  Authority  in  England. 


X  PREFACE. 

It  is  worthy  of  remembrance  that  one  of  the  chief 
authorities  for  the  views  advanced  in  this  History 
is  the  celebrated  Codex  Biplomaticus,  the  printing 
of  which  occupied  nine  years  of  the  author's  life. 
The  re-editing  of  that  great  work,  under  new  ar- 
rangement, with  collations,  and  incorporation  of  a 
large  quantity  of  newly  found  material,  has  now 
so  clearly  become  a  necessity,  that  steps  should 
be  taken  to  re-publish  the  enormous  collection  of 
documents  relating  to  Anglosaxon  times  and  Anglo- 
saxon  history. 

No  one  can  read  the  summary  of  Kemble's  in- 
vestigations, which  is  contained  in  the  concluding 
chapter  to  the  First  Volume,  without  feeling  bound 
to  acknowledge  that  its  pages  contain  the  heartfelt 
convictions  of  one  who  has  spared  no  pains  to 
mature  his  own  knowledge  of  the  inner  springs 
which  actuated  the  conduct  of  our  forefathers'  lives 
and  advanced  their  culture,  nor  failed  in  his  en- 
deavour to  impart  to  his  readers  a  correct  view  of 
these  important  elements  of  our  own  manners  and 
customs  ; — in  Kemble's  own  words,  "  the  history  of 
our  childhood,  the  explanation  of  our  manhood." 

W.  DE  G.  B. 

London, 
September  11th,  1870. 


CONTENTS. 

VOL.  I. 

BOOK  I. 

THE  ORIGINAL  SETTLEMENT  OF  THE  ANGLOSAXON 
COMMONWEALTPI. 

Chapter  Page 

I.     Saxon  and  Welsh  Traditions 1 

II.     The  Mark 35 

III.  The  Ga  or  Scir 72 

IV.  Landed  Possession.  The  E-Sel,  Hid,  or  Alod  <Sy 
V.     Personal  Eank.  The  Freeman.  The  Noble   .  122 

VI.     The  King 137 

VII.     The  Noble  by  Service 162 

VIII.     The  Unfree.     The  Serf 185 

IX.     The  Mutual  Guarantee.   Msegburh.  Tithing. 

Hundred 22b 

X.     Faeh^e.     Wergyld 267 

XI.     Folcland.     Bocland.     La;nland      ....  289 

XII.     Heathendom 327 

Appendix. 

A.  Marks 449 

B.  The  Hid 487 

0.  Manumission  of  Serfs 496 

D.  Orcy's  Guild  at  Abbotsbury 511 

E.  Lsenland 517 

F.  Heathendom 523 


THE 

SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


BOOK  I. 


THE  ORIGINAL   SETTLEMENT  OF  THE   ANGLO-SAXON 
COMMONWEALTH. 


CHAPTER  I. 

SAXON  AND  WELSH   TRADITIONS. 

Eleven  centuries  ago,  an  industrious  and  consci- 
entious historian,  desiring  to  give  a  record  of  the 
establishment  of  his  forefathers  in  this  island,  could 
find  no  fuller  or  better  account  than  this :  "  About 
the  year  of  Grace  445-446,  the  British  inhabitants 
of  England,  deserted  by  the  Eoman  masters  who 
had  enervated  while  they  protected  them,  and  ex- 
posed to  the  ravages  of  Picts  and  Scots  from  the 
extreme  and  barbarous  portions  of  the  island,  called 
in  the  assistance  of  heathen  Saxons  from  the  conti- 
nent of  Europe.  The  strangers  faithfully  performed 
their  task,  and  chastised  the  Northern  invaders  ; 
then,  in  scorn  of  the  weakness  of  their  employers, 
subjected  them  in  turn  to  the  yoke,  and  after  vari- 
ous vicissitudes  of   fortune,  established  their  own 

VOL.  I.  B 


2  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [^5°°^  ^■ 

power  upon  the  ruins  of  Roman  and  British  civi- 
lization." The  few  details  which  had  reached  the 
historian  taught  that  the  strangers  were  under  the 
guidance  of  two  brothers,  Hengest  and  Hors :  that 
their  armament  was  conveyed  in  three  ships  or 
keels :  that  it  consisted  of  Jutes,  Saxons  and  An- 
gles: that  their  successes  stimulated  similar  ad- 
venturers among  their  countrymen:  and  that  in 
process  of  time  their  continued  migrations  were  so 
large  and  numerous,  as  to  have  reduced  Anglia, 
their  original  home,  to  a  desert^ 

Such  was  the  tale  of  the  victorious  Saxons  in  the 
eighth  century  :  at  a  later  period,  the  vanquished 
Britons  found  a  melancholy  satisfaction  in  adding 
details  which  might  brand  the  career  of  their  con- 
querors with  the  stain  of  disloyalty.  According  to 
these  hostile  authorities,  treachery  and  fraud  pre- 
pared and  consolidated  the  Saxon  triumph.  The 
wiles  of  Hengest's  beautiful  daughter^  subdued  the 
mind  of  the  British  ruler;  a  murderous  violation 
of  the  rights  of  hospitality,  which  cut  off  the  chief- 
tains of  the  Britons  at  the  very  table  of  their  hosts, 
delivered  over  the  defenceless  land  to  the  barba- 
rous invader  ^ ;  and  the  miraculous  intervention  of 

1  Beda,  Hist.  Eccl.  i.  14, 15.   Gildas,  Hist.  §  14.  Nennius,  Hist.  §  38. 

'  It  is  uncertain  from  the  MSS.  whether  this  lady  is  to  he  called 
Kouwen  or  Ronwen.  The  usual  English  tradition  gives  her  name  as 
Rowena ;  if  this  he  accurate,  I  presume  our  pagan  forefathers  knew 
something  of  a  divine  personage — Hro'Sw^n — possibly  a  dialectical 
form  of  the  great  and  glorious  goddess  HriS'Se  ;  for  whom  refer  to  Chap- 
ter X.  of  this  Book. 

^  The  story  of  the  treacherous  mui'der  perpetrated  upon  the  Welsh 
chieftains  does  not  claim  an  English  origin.  It  is  related  of  the  Old- 
saxons  upon  the  continent,  in  connexion  with  the  conquest  of  the 
Thuringians.     See  Widukiud. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TEADITIONS.  3 

Germanus,  the  spells  of  Merlin  and  the  prowess 
of  Arthur,  or  the  victorious  career  of  Aurelius  Am- 
brosius,  although  they  delayed  and  in  part  avenged, 
yet  could  not  prevent  the  downfal  of  their  people^. 
Meagre  indeed  are  the  accounts  which  thus  satis- 
fied the  most  enquiring  of  our  forefathers ;  yet  such 
as  they  are,  they  were  received  as  the  undoubted 
truth,  and  appealed  to  in  later  periods  as  the  earliest 
authentic  record  of  our  race.  The  acuter  criticism  of 
an  age  less  prone  to  believe,  more  skilful  in  the  ap- 
preciation of  evidence,  and  familiar  with  the  fleeting 
forms  of  mythical  and  epical  thought,  sees  in  them 
only  a  confused  mass  of  traditions  borrowed  from 
the  most  heterogeneous  sources,  compacted  rudely 
and  with  little  ingenuity,  and  in  which  the  smallest 
possible  amount  of  historical  truth  is  involved  in  a 
great  deal  of  fable.  Yet  the  truth  which  such  tra- 
ditions do  nevertheless  contain,  yields  to  the  al- 
chemy of  our  days  a  golden  harvest :  if  we  cannot 
undoubtingly  accept  the  details  of  such  legends, 
they  still  point  out  to  us  at  least  the  course  we 
must  pursue  to  discover  the  elements  of  fact  upon 
which  the  Mythus  and  Epos  rest,  and  guide  us  to 
the  period  and  the  locality  where  these  took  root 
and  flourished. 

From  times  beyond  the  records  of  history,  it  is 
certain  that  continual  changes  were  taking  place  in 
the  position  and  condition  of  the  various  tribes  that 
peopled  the  northern  districts  of  Europe.  Into  this 
great  basin  the  successive  waves  of  Keltic,  Teutonic 

1  Conf.  Nennius,  Hist.  37  seq.,  46  seq.  Beda,  Hist.  Ecc.  i.  14,  15. 
Gildas,  Hist.  §  25. 

b2 


4  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

and  Slavonic  migrations  were  poured,  and  here, 
through  hundi-eds  of  years,  were  probably  reproduced 
convulsions,  terminated  only  by  the  great  outbreak 
which  the  Germans  call  the  wandering  of  the  nations. 
For  successive  generations,  the  tribes,  or  even  por- 
tions o£  tribes,  may  have  moved  from  place  to 
place,  as  the  necessities  of  their  circumstances  de- 
manded ;  names  may  have  appeared,  and  vanished 
altogether  from  the  scene ;  wars,  seditions,  con- 
qiiests,  the  rise  and  fall  of  states,  the  solemn  forma- 
tion or  dissolution  of  confederacies,  may  have  filled 
the  ages  which  intervened  between  the  first  settle- 
ment of  the  Teutons  in  Germany,  and  their  appear- 
ance in  history  as  dangerous  to  the  quiet  of  Rome. 
The  heroic  lays  ^  may  possibly  preserve  some  sha- 
dowy traces  of  these  events ;  but  of  all  the  changes 
in  detail  we  know  nothing:  we  argue  only  that 
nations  possessiiig  in  so  preeminent  a  degree  as 
the  Germans,  the  principles,  the  arts  and  institu- 
tions of  civilization,  must  have  passed  through  a 
long  apprenticeship  of  action  and  suffering,  and 
have  learnt  in  the  rough  school  of  practice  the 
wisdom  they  embodied  in  their  lives. 

Possessing  no  written  annals,  and  trusting  to  the 

1  The  Anglosaxon  Traveller's  Song  containa  a  multitude  of  names 
which  cannot  be  found  elsewhere.  Paulus  Diaoonus  and  Jornandes 
have  evidently  used  ancient  poems  as  the  foundation  of  their  histories. 
The  lays  of  the  various  Germanic  cycles  still  furnish  details  respecting 
Ilermanaric,  Otachar,  Theodoric,  Hiltibrant  and  other  heroes  of  this 
troubled  period.  But  the  reader  who  would  judge  of  the  fragmentary 
and  unsatisfactory  result  of  all  that  the  ancient  world  has  recorded  of 
the  new,  had  better  consult  that  most  remarkable  work  of  Zeuss,  Die 
Deutscheu  und  die  Nachbarstamme.  Munich,  1837.  He  will  there  see 
how  the  profoundest  science  halts  after  the  reality  of  ancient  ages,  and 
strives  in  vaui  to  reduce  their  manifold  falsehood  to  a  truth. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  5 

poet  the  task  of  the  historian,  our  forefathers  have 
left  but  scanty  records  of  their  early  condition  ^. 
Nor  did  the  supercilious  or  unsuspecting  ignorance 
of  Italy  care  to  enquire  into  the  mode  of  life  and 
habits  of  the  barbarians  until  their  strong  arms 
threatened  the  civilization  and  the  very  existence 
of  the  empire  itself.  Then  first,  dimly  through  the 
twilight  in  which  the  sun  of  Rome  was  to  set  for 
ever,  loomed  the  Colossus  of  the  German  race, 
gigantic,  terrible,  inexplicable  ;  and  the  vague  at- 
tempt to  define  its  awful  features  came  too  late  to 
be  fully  successful.  In  Tacitus,  the  city  possessed 
indeed  a  thinker  worthy  of  the  exalted  theme  ;  but 
his  sketch,  though  vigorous  beyond  expectation,  is 
incomplete  in  many  of  the  most  material  points : 
yet  this  is  the  most  detailed  and  fullest  account 
which  we  possess,  and  nearly  the  only  certain 
source  of  information  till  we  arrive  at  the  moment 
when  the  invading  tribes  in  every  portion  of  the 
empire  entered  upon  their  great  task  of  recon- 
structing society  from  its  foundations.  Slowly, 
from  point  to  point,  and  from  time  to  time,  traces 
are  recognized  of  powerful  struggles,  of  national 
movements,  of  destructive  revolutions:  but  the 
definite  facts  which  emerge  from  the  darkness  of 
the  first  three  centuries  are  rare  and  fragmentary. 

Let  us  confine  our  attention  to  that  portion  of 
the  race  which  settled  on  our  own  shores. 

The  testimony  of  contemporaneous  history  as- 
sures us  that  about  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century, 

'  "  Celebrant  carminibus  antiquis,  quod  unum  apud  illos  memoriae 
et  annalium  genus  est."    Tao.  Mor.  Germ.  cap.  ii. 


C  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

a  considerable  movement  took  place  among  the 
tribes  that  inhabited  the  western  coasts  of  Ger- 
many and  the  islands  of  the  Baltic  sea.  Pressed 
at  home  by  the  incursions  of  restless  neighbours, 
and  the  urgency  of  increasing  population,  or  yield- 
ing to  the  universal  spirit  of  adventure,  Angles, 
Saxons  and  Frisians  crossed  a  little-known  and 
dangerous  ocean  to  seek  new  settlements  in  ad- 
jacent lands.  Familiar  as  we  are  with  daring  deeds 
of  maritime  enterprise,  who  have  seen  our  flag  float 
over  every  sea,  and  flutter  in  every  breeze  that 
sweeps  over  the  surface  of  the  earth,  we  cannot 
contemplate  without  astonishment  and  admiration, 
these  hardy  sailors,  swarming  on  every  point,  tra- 
versing every  ocean,  sweeping  every  sestuary  and 
bay,  and  landing  on  every  shore  which  promised 
plunder  or  a  temporary  rest  from  their  fatigues. 
The  wealth  of  Gaul  had  already  attracted  fearful 
visitations,  and  the  spoils  of  Roman  cultivation  had 
been  displayed  before  the  wondering  borderers  of 
the  Elbe  and  Eyder,  the  prize  of  past,  and  incen- 
tive to  future  activity.  Britain,  fertile  and  defence- 
less, abounding  in  the  accumulations  of  a  long 
career  of  peace,  deserted  by  its  ancient  lords,  un- 
accustomed to  arms  ^,  and  accustomed  to  the  yoke, 

'  This  is  asserted  both  by  Gildas  and  Neimius,  and  it  is  not  in  itself 
improbable.  The  Romans  did  sometimes  attempt  to  disarm  the  na- 
tions they  subdued  :  thus  Probus  with  the  Alamanni.  Vopisc.  cap.  14. 
Malmsbury's  account  of  the  defenceless  state  of  Britain  was  probably 
not  exaggerated.  He  says :  "  Ita  cum  tyranni  nullum  in  agris  praeter 
semibarbaros,  nullum  in  urbibus  praeter  ventri  deditos  reliquissent,  Bri- 
tannia omni  patrocinio  iuvenilis  vigoris  viduata,  omni  exercitio  artium 
exinanita,  conterminarum  gentium  inhiationi  diu  obnoxia  fuit."  Gest. 
Reg.  lib.  i.  §  2. 


CH.  I.J  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  7 

at  once  invited  attack  and  held  out  the  prospect  of 
a  rich  reward  :  and  it  is  certain  that  at  that  period, 
there  took  place  some  extensive  migration  of  Ger- 
mans to  the  shores  of  England  ^.  The  expeditions 
known  to  tradition  as  those  of  Hengest,  JEUi,  Cissa, 
Cerdic  and  Port,  may  therefore  have  some  foun- 
dation in  fact ;  and  around  this  meagre  nucleus  of 
truth  were  grouped  the  legends  which  afterwards 
served  to  conceal  the  poverty  and  eke  out  the 
scanty  stock  of  early  history.  But  I  do  not  think 
it  at  all  probable  that  this  was  the  earliest  period 
at  which  the  Germans  formed  settlements  in  Eng- 
land. 

It  is  natural  to  believe  that  for  many  centuries 
a  considerable  and  active  intercourse  had  prevailed 
between  the  southern  and  eastern  shores  of  this 
island,  and  the  western  districts  of  Gaul.  The  first 
landing  of  Julius  Caesar  was  caused  or  justified  by 
the  assurance  that  his  Gallic  enemies  recruited  their 
armies  and  repaired  their  losses,  by  the  aid  of  their 
British  kinsmen  and  allies  ^ ;  and  the  merchants  of 
the  coast,  who  found  a  market  in  .Britain,  reluc- 
tantly furnished  him  with  the  information  upon 
which  the  plan  of  his  invasion  was  founded^.    When 

'  Prosper  Tyro,  a.d.  441,  says,  "  Theodosii  xviii.  Britanniae  usque 
ad  hoc  tempus  variis  cladibus  eventibusque  latae  [?  laceratae]  in  di- 
tionem  Saxonum  rediguntur."  See  also  Prooop.  Bel.  Got.  iv.  20.  The 
former  of  these  passages  might  however  be  understood  without  the  as- 
sumption of  an  immigration,  which  the  movements  of  Attila  render 
probable. 

2  BeU.  Gal.  iii.  8.  9 ;  iv.  20. 

^  Especially  the  Veneti  :  erotfioi  yap  rjaav  KotXveiv  tov  els  T-fjv  jSpeT-- 
TavtKfjv  ttXovv,  xP'^'H-^voi  ra  eimopia.  Strabo,  bk.  iv.  p.  271.  Conf  Bell. 
Gall.  iv.  20. 


8  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  fortune  and  the  arms  of  Eome  had  prevailed 
over  her  ill-disciplined  antagonists,  and  both  con- 
tinent and  island  were  subject  to  the  same  all-em- 
bracing rule,  it  is  highly  probable  that  the  ancient 
bonds  were  renewed,  and  that  the  most  familiar 
intercourse  continued  to  prevail.  In  the  time  of 
Strabo  the  products  of  the  island,  corn,  cattle,  gold, 
silver  and  iron,  skins,  slaves,  and  a  large  descrip- 
tion of  dog,  were  exported  by  the  natives,  no  doubt 
principally  to  the  neighbouring  coasts,  and  their 
commerce  with  these  was  sufficient  to  justify  the 
imposition  of  an  export  and  import  duty  i.  As  early 
as  the  time  of  Nero,  London,  though  not  a  colony, 
was  remarkable  as  a  mercantile  station  ^,  and  in  all 
human  probability  was  the  great  mart  of  the  Gauls. 
There  cannot  be  the  least  doubt  that  an  active  com- 
munication was  maintained  throughout  by  the  Kel- 
tic nations  on  the  different  sides  of  the  channel ; 
and  similarly,  as  German  tribes  gradually  advanced 
along  the  lines  of  the  Elbe,  the  Weser,  the  Maes 
and  the  Rhine,  occupying  the  countries  which  lie 
upon  the  banks  of  those  rivers,  and  between  them 
and  the  sea,  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  some 
offsets  of  their  great  migrations  reached  the  oppo- 
site shores  of  England^.     As  early  as  the  second 


1  Book  iv.  p.  278.  =  Tacit.  Ann.  xiv.  33. 

^  Caesar  notices  the  migrations  of  continental  tribes  to  Britain  :  lie 
says,  "  Britanniae  pars  interior  ab  lis  incolitur,  quos  natos  in  insula 
ipsa  memoria  proditum  dicunt ;  maritima  pars  ab  lis  qui  praedae  ac 
belli  inferendi  causa  ex  Belgis  transierant ;  qui  omnes  fere  iis  nomini- 
bus  civitatum  adpellantur,  quibus  orti  ex  civitatibus  so  pervenerunt,  et 
belle  inlato  ibi  remanserunt,  atque  agros  colere  coeperunt."  Bell.  Gall, 
v.]  2. 


CH.  1.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  9 

century,  Chauci  are  mentioned  among  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  south-east  of  Ireland^,  and  although  we 
have  only  the  name  whereby  to  identify  them  with 
the  great  Saxon  tribe,  yet  this  deserves  considera- 
tion when  compared  with  the  indisputably  Keltic 
names  of  the  surrounding  races.  The  Coritavi,  who 
occupied  the  present  counties  of  Lincoln,  Leicester, 
Rutland,  Northampton,  Nottingham  and  Derby, 
were  Germans,  according  to  the  Welsh  tradition 
itself^,  and  the  next  following  name  Karvev-^^Xavol, 
though  not  certainly  German,  bears  a  strong  re- 
semblance to  many  German  formations^. 

Without,  however,  laying  more  stress  upon  these 
facts  than  they  will  fairly  warrant,  let  us  proceed 
to  other  considerations  which  render  it  probable 
that  a  large  admixture  of  German  tribes  was  found 

'  Ptolemy,  bk.  ii.  c.  2.  It  is  true  that  Ptolemy  calls  them  KqCkoi, 
but  this  mode  of  spelling  is  not  unexampled,  and  is  found  in  even  so 
correct  a  writer  as  Strabo.  The  proper  form  is  Kaixoi.  Latin  authors 
occasionally  write  Cauci  for  Ohauci,  and  sometimes  even  Oauchi :  see 
Zeuss,  Die  Deutschen  und  die  Nachbarstamme,  p.  138.  It  is  right  to 
add  that  Zeuss,  whose  opinion  on  such  a  point  is  entitled  to  the  highest 
consideration,  hesitates  to  include  these  KaCxot  among  G  ermanic  tribes 
(p.  199).  The  Mamnioi,  placed  also  by  Ptolemy  in  Ireland,  can  hardly 
be  Germans. 

'  Ptolemy,  bk.  ii.  C.  3.  ij,c6'  ovs  Kopiravo),  ev  ols  jrdXeis,  \lv8ov,  pdye- 
elTttj  'K.aTvevxkavoi,  ev  ols  TrdXeiff,  caX^yat  [al.  traXtouat],  ovpoXdvtov. 
Others  have  preferred  the  form  Kopiravol,  hut  the  authority  of  the  best 
manuscripts,  not  less  than  the  analogy  of  the  names  Ingaevones,  Iscae- 
vones,  Chamavi,  Batavi,  confirms  the  earlier  reading.  According  to  the 
Triads,  these  Coritavi  (Ooriuiaidd)  had  migrated  from  a  Teutonic  marsh- 
land. Thorpe's  Lappenberg,  i.  15.  The  word  is  thus  in  all  probability 
derived  from  Hor,  lutum,  Horiht,  lutosus ;  equivalent  to  the  "  aquosa 
Fresonum  arva."  Vit.  Sci.  Sturm.  Pertz.  ii.  372.  "  Saxones,  gentem 
oceani,  in  littoribus  et  paludibus  inviis  sitam."  Oros.  vii.  32. 

"  Ghatuarii,  HeaSobeardan.  HeaSorsemes.  However  Gatu  is  a  ge- 
nuine British  prefix. 


10  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

in  England  long  previous  to  the  middle  of  the  fifth 
century.  It  appears  to  me  that  the  presence  of 
Roman  emperors  recruiting  the  forces  with  which 
the  throne  of  the  world  was  to  be  disputed,  from 
among  the  hardiest  populations  of  the  continent, 
must  not  only  have  led  to  the  settlement  of  Teu- 
tonic families  in  this  island,  but  also  to  the  main- 
tenance, on  their  part,  of  a  steady  intercourse  with 
their  kinsmen  who  remained  behind.  The  military 
colony,  moreover,  which  claimed  to  be  settled  upon 
good  arable  land,  formed  the  easiest  and  most  ad- 
vantageous mode  of  pensioning  the  emeriti;  and 
many  a  successful  Caesar  may  have  felt  that  his 
own  safety  was  better  secured  by  portioning  his  Ger- 
man veterans  in  the  fruitful  valleys  of  England, 
than  by  settling  them  as  doubtful  garrisons  in 
Lombardy  or  Campania. 

The  fertile  fields  which  long  before  had  merited 
the  praises  of  the  first  Roman  victor,  must  have  of- 
fered attractions  enough  to  induce  wandering  Sax- 
ons and  Angles  to  desert  the  marshes  and  islands 
of  the  Elbe,  and  to  call  Frisian  adventurers  over 
from  the  sands  and  salt-pools  of  their  home.  If  in 
the  middle  of  the  fifth  century  Saxons  had  esta- 
blished regular  settlements  at  Bayeux^ ;  if  even 
before  this  time  the  country  about  Grannona  bore 
the  name  of  Littus  Saxonicum^,  we  may  easily  be- 


^  Saxones  Baiocassini.  Greg.  Turon.  v.  27 ;  x.  9. 

2  Grannona  in  littore  Saxonico.  Notit.  Imp.  Occid.  c.  86.  Du 
Oliesne  Hist.  i.  p.  3.  The  Totingas,  -who  have  left  their  name  to  Toot- 
ing in  Surrey,  are  recorded  also  at  Tdtingaham  in  the  county  of  Bou- 
logne. Leo,  Rectitudines  singularum  personarum,  p.  26. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  11 

lieve  that  at  still  earlier  periods  other  Saxons  had 
found  over  the  intervening  ocean  a  way  less  dan- 
gerous and  tedious  than  a  march  through  the  ter- 
ritories of  jealous  or  hostile  neighbours,  or  even 
than   a   coasting  voyage   along   barbarous    shores 
defended  by  a  yet  more  barbarous  population.     A 
north-east  wind  would,   almost  without    effort    of 
their  own,  have  carried  their  ships  from  Helgoland 
and  the  islands  of  the  Elbe,  or  from  Silt  and  Rom- 
seyi,  to  the  Wash  and  the  coast  of  Norfolk.    There 
seems  then  every  probability  that  bodies  more  or 
less  numerous,  of  coast-Germans,  perhaps  actually 
of  Saxons  and  Angles,  had  colonized  the  eastern 
shores  of  England  long  before  the  time  generally 
assumed  for  their  advent^.     The  very  exigencies  of 
military  service  had  rendered  this  island  familiar 
to  the  nations  of  the  continent :  Batavi,  under  their 
own  national  chieftains,  had  earned  a  share  of  the 
Roman  glory,  and  why  not  of  the  Roman  land,  in 

'  Ptolemy  calls  tte  islands  at  the  mouth  of  the  Elbe,  2a^6vcov  vrja-oi 
Tpiii.  Zeuss  considers  these  to  be  Fohr,  Silt  and  Nordstrand.  Die 
Deutschen,  p.  150.  Lappenberg  sees  in  them,  North  Fiiesland,  Eider- 
stedt,  Nordstrand,  Wickingharde  and  Booingharde.  Thorpe,  Lap.  i. 
87.  It  seems  hardly  conceivable  that  Frisians,  who  occupied  the  coast 
as  early  as  the  time  of  Caesar,  should  not  have  found  their  way  by  sea 
to  Britain,  especially  when  pressed  by  Roman  power :  see  Tac.  Ann. 
xiii.  54. 

^  Hengest  defeated  the  Picts  and  Scots  at  Stamford  in  Lincolnshire, 
not  far  from  the  Nene,  the  Withara  and  the  Welland,  upon  whose  banks 
it  is  nearly  certain  that  there  were  German  settlements.  Widuldnd's 
story  of  an  embassy  from  the  Britons  to  the  Saxons,  to  entreat  aid,  is 
thus  rendered  not  altogether  improbable  :  but  then  it  must  be  under- 
stood of  Saxons  already  established  in  England,  and  on  the  very  line  of 
march  of  the  Northern  invaders,  whom  they  thus  took  most  effectually 
in  ilank.  Compare  Geoifry's  story  of  Vortigern  giving  Hengest  lands 
in  Lincolnshire,  etc. 


12  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [=0°^  ^ 

Britaini  ?  The  policy  of  the  Emperor  Marcus  An- 
toninus, at  the  successful  close  of  the  Marcomannic 
war,  had  transplanted  to  Britain  multitudes  of  Ger- 
mans, to  serve  at  once  as  instruments  of  Koman 
power  and  as  hostages  for  their  countrymen  on  the 
frontier;  of  the  empire  2.  The  remnants  of  this  once 
powerful  confederation  cannot  but  have  left  long 
and  lasting  traces  of  their  settlement  among  us;  nor 
can  it  be  considered  at  all  improbable  that  Carau- 
sius,  when  in  the  year  287,  he  raised  the  standard  of 
revolt  in  Britain,  calculated  upon  the  assistance  of 
the  Germans  in  this  country,  as  well  as  that  of  their 
allies  and  brethren  on  the  continent^.     Nineteen 


'  Tac.  Hist.  iv.  12,  atout  a.d.  69.  "Diu  Germaniois  bellis  exerciti; 
mox  aucta  per  Britanniam  gloria,  transmissis  illuc  oohortitus,  quas 
vetere  institute,  nobilissimi  popularium  regebant." 

^  Dio.  Oas.  Ixxi.  Ixxii.  Gibbon,  Dec.  cap.  ix.  At  a  later  period, 
Probus  settled  Vandals  and  Burgundians  bere :  Zosimus  tells  us  (Hist. 
Nov.  i.  68)  :  oaous  5c  ^avras  olds  re  yeyovev  iXelv,  eh  BperravLav  nape- 
nefiylrev  ot  rrjv  v^crov  oiKrjaavTeSf  iiravao-rdvTOS  pera  ravrd  Ttvos,  yeyovacri 
/3ao-tXf I  pfp^trijiioi.  Procopius  even  goes  so  far  as  to  make  Belisarius 
talk  of  Goths  in  Britain,  but  the  context  itself  proves  tbat  tbis  deserves 
very  little  notice.  Bell.  Got.  ii.  6. 

^  Carausius  was  a  Menapian  :  but  in  tbe  third  century  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  Menapian  territoiy  were  certainly  Teutonic.  Aurelius  Victor 
calls  him  a  Batavian :  see  Gibbon,  Dec.  cap.  xiii.  Carausius,  and  after 
him  AUectus,  maintained  a  German  force  here :  "  Omnes  enim  illos,  ut 
audio,  campos  atque  colles  non  nisi  teterrimorum  hostium  corpora  fusa 
texerunt.  Ilia  barbara  aut  imitafione  barbariae  olim  cultu  vestis,  et 
prolixo  crine  rutilantia,  tunc  vero  pulvere  et  cruore  foedata,  et  in  diver- 

Eos  situs  tracta,  sicuti  dolorem  vulnerum  fuerant  secuta,  iacuerunt 

Enimvero,  Caesar  invicte,  tanto  deorum  immortalium  tibi  est  addicta 
consensu  omnium  quidem  quos  adortus  fueris  hostium,  sed  praecipue 
internecio  Francorum,  ut  illi  quoque  mUites  vestri,  qui  per  errorem  ne- 
bulosi,  ut  paullo  ante  dixi,  maris  abiuncti  ad  oppidum  Londiniense 
pervenerunt,  quidquid  ex  mercenaria  ilia  multitudine  barbarorum  prae- 
lio  superfuerat,  cum  direpta  civitate,  fugam  capessere  cogitarent,  passim 
tota  urbe  confecerint."  Eumen.  Paneg.  Const,  cap.  18,  19. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  13 

years  later  the  death  of  Constantius  delivered  the 
dignity  of  Caesar  to  his  son  Constantine :  he  was 
solemnly  elected  to  that  dignity  in  Britain,  and 
among  his  supporters  was  Crocus,  or  as  some  read 
Erocus,  an  Alamannic  king  who  had  accompanied 
his  father  from  Germany i.  Still  later,  under  Va- 
lentinian,  we  find  an  auxiliary  force  of  Alamanni 
serving  with  the  Eoman  legions  here. 

By  chronological  steps  we  have  now  approached 
the  period  at  which  was  compiled  the  celebrated 
document  entitled  '  Notitia  utriusque  imperii '  2. 
Even  if  we  place  this  at  the  latest  admissible  date, 
it  is  still  at  least  half  a  century  earlier  than  the  ear- 
liest date  assigned  to  Hengest.  Among  the  im- 
portant ofRcers  of  state  mentioned  therein  as  admi- 
nistering the  affairs  of  this  island,  is  the  Comes  Lit- 
toris  Saxonici  per  Britannias;  and  his  government, 
which  extended  from  near  the  present  site  of  Ports- 

^  Aurel.  Vict.  cap.  4i.  Lappenberg,  referring  to  this  fact  (Thorpe,  i. 
47),  asks,  "  May  not  the  name  Erocus  be  a  corruption  of  Ertocus,  a  La- 
tinization  of  the  old-Saxon  Heritogo,  dux?"  I  think  not;  for  an  Ala- 
man  would  have  been  called  by  a  high  and  not  low  German  name,  He- 
rizohho,  hot  Heritogo.  I  think  it  much  more  likely  that  his  name  was 
Ohrohho  or  Hroca,  a  rooh. 

^  Pancirolus  would  date  this  important  record  in  a.d.  438.  Gibbon, 
however,  refutes  him  and  places  it  between  395  and  407.  Dec.  cap. 
xvii.  I  am  inclined  to  think  even  this  date  inaccurate,  and  that  the 
Romans  did  not  maintain  any  such  great  establishment  in  Britain,  as  that 
herein  described,  at  so  late  a  period.  For  even  Ammianus  tells  us  in 
864,  "  Hoc  tempore  Picti,  Saxonesque  et  Scotti  et  Attaootti  Britannos 
aerumnis  vexavere  continuis,"  (Hist.  xxvi.  4),  which  is  hardly  consis- 
tent with  a  flourishing  state  of  the  Roman  civil  and  military  rule.  The 
actual  document  we  possess  may  possibly  date  from  390  or  400,  but  it 
refers  to  the  arrangements  of  an  earlier  time,  and  to  an  organization  of 
Roman  power  in  more  palmy  days  of  their  dominion. 


14  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

mouth  to  Wells  in  Norfolk^,  was  supported  by  va- 
rious civil  and  military  establishments,  dispersed 
along  the  whole  sea-board.  The  term  Littus  Sax- 
onicum  has  been  explained  to  mean  rather  the  coast 
visited  by,  or  exposed  to  the  ravages  of,  the  Sax- 
ons, than  the  coast  occupied  by  them :  but  against 
this  loose  system  of  philological  and  historical  in- 
terpretation I  beg  emphatically  to  protest :  it  seems 
to  have  arisen  merely  from  the  uncritical  spirit  in 
which  the  Saxon  and  Welsh  traditions  have  been 
adopted  as  ascertained  facts,  and  from  the  impos- 
sibility of  reconciling  the  account  of  Beda  with  the 
natural  sense  of  the  entry  in  the  Notitia :  but  there 
seems  no  reason  whatever  for  adopting  an  excep- 
tional rendering  in  this  case,  and  as  the  Littus  Sax- 
onicum  on  the  mainland  was  that  district  in  which 
members  of  the  Saxon  confederacy  were  settled,  the 
Littus  Saxonicum  per  Britannias  unquestionably 
obtained  its  name  from  a  similar  circumstance^. 


'  The  document  itself  may  be  consulted  in  Graevius,  vol.  vii.  The 
"littus  Saxonicum  per  Britannias"  extended  at  least  from  the  Portus 
Adurni  to  JBranodunum,  that  is,  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Portsmouth 
to  Branchester  on  the  Wash.  In  both  these  places  there  were  civil  or 
military  officers  under  the  orders  of  the  Comes  littoris  Saxonici. 

'  Professor  Leo,  of  Halle,  has  called  attention  to  a  remarkable  re- 
semblance between  the  names  of  certain  places  in  Kent,  and  settlements 
of  the  Alamanni  upon  the  Neckar.  A  few  of  these,  it  must  be  admitted, 
are  striking,  but  the  majority  are  only  such  as  might  be  expected  to 
arise  from  similarities  of  surface  and  natural  features  in  any  two  coun- 
tries settled  by  cognate  populations,  having  nearly  the  same  language, 
religious  rites  and  civil  institutions.  Even  if  the  fact  be  admitted  in 
the  fullest  extent,  it  is  still  unnecessary  to  adopt  Dr.  Leo's  hypothesis, 
that  the  coincidence  is  due  to  a  double  migration  from  the  shores  of 
the  Elbe.  Rectitud.  sing,  person,  pp.  100-104.     It  has  been  already 


CH.  I.J  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  15 

Thus  far  the  object  of  this  rapid  sketch  has  been 
to  show  the  improbabiUty  of  our  earliest  records 
being  anything  more  than  ill-understood  and  con- 
fused traditions,  accepted  without  criticism  by  our 
first  annalists,  and  to  refute  the  opinion  loiig  enter- 
tained by  our  chroniclers,  that  the  Germanic  set- 
tlements in  England  really  date  from  the  middle  of 
the  fifth  century.      The  results  at  which  we  have 
arrived  are  far  from  unimportant;  indeed  they  seem 
to  form  the  only  possible  basis  upon  which  we  can 
ground  a  consistent  and  intelligible  account  of  the 
manner  of  the  settlements  themselves.     And,  be  it 
remembered,   that   the   evidence  brought  forward 
upon  this  point  are  the  assertions  of  indifferent  and 
impartial  witnesses ;    statesmen,   soldiers,  men    of 
letters    and    philosophers,    who    merely   recorded 
events  of  which  they  had  full  means  of  becoming 
cognizant,  with  no  object  in  general  save  that  of 
stating  facts  appertaining  to  the  history  of  their 
empire.     Moreover,  the  accounts  they  give  are  pro- 
bable in  themselves  and  perfectly  consistent  with 
other  well-ascertained  facts  of  Roman  history.    Can 
the  same  praise  be  awarded  to  our  own  meagre 
national  traditions,  or  to  the  fuller,  detailed,  but  pal- 
stated  that  Constantius  was  accompanied  to  Britain  by  an  Alamannic 
king ;  and  I  cannot  doubt  that  under  Valentinian,  a  force  of  Alamanni 

served  in  this  coimtry.     Ammianus  says :  "  Valentinianus in  Ma- 

criani  locum,  Bucinobantibus,  quae  contra  Moguntiacum  gens  est  Ala- 
manua,  regem  Fraomarium  ordinavit :  quem  pauUo  postea,  quoniam 
recens  excursus  eundem  penitus  vastaverat  pagum,  in  Britannos  traus- 
latum  potestatetribuni,  Alamanuorum  praefecerat  numero,  multitudine, 
viribusque  ea  tempestate  ilorenti."  Hist.  xxix.  c.  4.  The  context 
renders  it  impossible  that  this  "  numerus  Alamannorum  "  should  ha'^-e 
been  anything  but  genuine  Germans. 


10  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

pably  uncritical  assertions  of  our  conquered  neigh- 
bours"?  I  confess  that  the  more  I  examine  this 
question,  the  more  completely  I  am  convinced  that 
the  received  accounts  of  our  migrations,  our  subse- 
quent fortunes,  and  ultimate  settlement,  are  devoid 
of  historical  truth  in  every  detail. 

It  strikes  the  enquirer  at  once  with  suspicion 
when  he  finds  the  tales  supposed  peculiar  to  his 
own  race  and  to  this  island,  shared  by  the  Ger- 
manic populations  of  other  lands,  and  with  slight 
changes  of  locality,  or  trifling  variations  of  detail, 
recorded  as  authentic  parts  of  their  history.  The 
readiest  belief  in  fortuitous  resemblances  and  co- 
incidences gives  way  before  a  number  of  instances 
whose  agreement  defies  all  the  calculation  of 
chances.  Thus,  when  we  find  Hengest  and  Hors 
approaching  the  coasts  of  Kent  in  three  keels,  and 
JEili  efiiecting  a  landing  in  Sussex  with  the  same 
number,  we  are  reminded  of  the  Gothic  tradition 
which  carries  a  migration  of  Ostrogoths,  Visigoths 
and  Gepidae,  also  in  three  vessels,  to  the  mouths 
of  the  Vistula,  certainly  a  spot  where  we  do  not 
readily  look  for  that  recurrence  to  a  trinal  calcula- 
tion, which  so  peculiarly  characterizes  the  modes  of 
thought  of  the  Cymri.  The  murder  of  the  British 
chieftains  by  Hengest  is  told  totidem  verbis  by 
Widukind  and  others,  of  the  Oldsaxons  in  Thurin- 
giai.     Geofii-y  of  Monmouth  relates  also  how  Hen- 

1  Widukind  in  Leibnitz,  Rer.  Brunsw.  i.  73,  74;  Eepgow,  Sachsensp. 
iii.  44,  §  2.  It  is  amusing  enougli  to  see  how  the  number  of  ships 
increases  as  people  began  to  feel  the  absurdity  of  bringing  over  con- 
quering armies  in  such  very  small  flotillas. 


CH.  I.J  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  17 

gest  obtained  from  the  Britons  as  much  land  as 
could  be  enclosed  by  an  ox-hide  ;  then,  cutting  the 
hide  into  thongs,  enclosed  a  much  larger  space 
than  the  grantors  intended,  on  which  he  erected 
Thong  castle^ — a  tale  too  familiar  to  need  illustra- 
tion, and  which  runs  throughout  the  mythus  of 
many  nations.  Among  the  Oldsaxons  the  tradi- 
tion is  in  reality  the  same,  though  recorded  with 
a  slight  variety  of  detail.  In  their  story,  a  lapful 
of  earth  is  purchased  at  a  dear  rate  from  a  Thurin- 
gian ;  the  companions  of  the  Saxon  jeer  him  for 
his  imprudent  bargain ;  but  he  sows  the  purchased 
earth  over  a  large  space  of  ground,  which  he  claims 
and,  by  the  aid  of  his  comrades,  ultimately  wrests 
from  the  Thuringians^. 

To  the  traditional  history  of  the  tribes  peculiarly 
belong  the  genealogies  of  their  kings,  to  which  it 
will  be  necessary  to  refer  hereafter  in  a  mythological 
point  of  view.  For  the  present  it  is  enough  that  I 
call  attention  to  the  extraordinary  tale  of  Offa, 
who  occurs  at  an  early  stage  of  the  Mercian  table, 
among  the  progenitors  of  the  Mercian  kings.  This 
story,  as  we  find  it  in  Matthew  Paris's  detailed  ac- 
count^, coincides  in  the  minutest  particulars  with  a 

1  Galf.  Monum.  li.  Brit.,  vi.  11.  Thong  castle  proLaWy  gave  a  turn 
to  the  story  here  which  the  Oldsaxon  legend  had  not.  The  classical 
tale  of  Dido  and  Byrsa  is  well  known  to  every  schoolboy.  Ragnor 
Lodbrog  adopted  the  same  artifice,  Rag.  Lodb.  Saga,  cap.  19,  20. 
Nay  the  Hindoos  declare  that  we  obtained  possession  of  Calcutta  by 
similar  means. 

^  Widui.  in  loc.  citat,  also  Grimm's  Deutsche  Sagen,  No.  547,  369, 
and  Deutsche  Rechtsalt.  p.  90,  where  several  valuable  examples  are 
cited  :  it  is  remarkable  how  many  of  these  are  Thuringian. 

2  Vit.  Offae  Primi,  edited  by  Wats. 

VOL.  I.  C 


18 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 


tale  told  by  Saxo  Grammaticus  of  a  Danish  prince 
bearing  the  same  name^. 

The  form  itself  in  which  details,  which  profess 
to  be  authentic,  have  been  preserved,  ought  to  se- 
cure us  from  falling  into  error.  They  are  romantic, 
not  historical;  and  the  romance  has  salient  and 
characteristic  points,  not  very  reconcilable  with  the 
variety  which  marks  the  authentic  records  of  fact. 
For  example,  the  details  of  a  long  and  doubtful 
struggle  between  the  Saxons  and  the  Britons  are 
obviously  based  upon  no  solid  foundation ;  the  dates 
and  the  events  are  alike  traditional, — the  usual  and 
melancholy  consolation  of  the  vanquished.  In  pro- 
portion as  we  desert  the  older  and  apply  to  later 
sources  of  information,  do  we  meet  with  success- 
ful wars,  triumphant  British  chieftains,  vanquished 
Saxons,  heroes  endowed  with  supernatural  powers 
and  blessed  with  supernatural  luck.  Gildas,  Nen- 
nius  and  Beda  mention  but  a  few  contests,  and 
even  these  of  a  doubtful  and  suspicious  character ; 
Geoifry  of  Monmouth  and  gossipers  of  his  class, 
on  the  contrary,  are  full  of  wondrous  incidents  by 
flood  and  field,  of  details  calculated  to  flatter  the 
pride  or  console  the  sorrows  of  Keltic  auditors  :  the 
successes  which  those  who  lived  in  or  near  the 
times  described  either  pass  over  in  modest  silence 
or  vaguely  insinuate  under  sweeping  generalities, 
are  impudently  related  by  this  fabler  and  his  copy- 
ists with  every  richness  of  narration.  According  to 
him  the  invaders  are  defeated  in  every  part  of  the 

'  Saxo  Gramm.  blc.  iv.  p.  59  seq. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  19 

island,  nay  even  expelled  from  it ;  army  after  army 
is  destroyed,  chieftain  after  chieftain  slain  ;  till  he 
winds  up  his  enormous  tissue  of  fabrications  with 
the  defeat,  the  capture  and  execution  of  a  hero 
whose  very  existence  becomes  problematical  when 
tested  by  the  severe  principles  of  historical  criti- 
cism, and  who,  according  to  the  strict  theory  of 
our  times,  can  hardly  be  otherwise  than  enrolled 
among  the  gods,  through  a  godlike  or  half-godlike 
form^. 

It  is  no  doubt  probable  that  the  whole  land 
was  not  subdued  without  some  pains  in  different 
quarters  ;  that  here  and  there  a  courageous  leader 
or  a  favourable  position  may  have  enabled  the 
aborigines  to  obtain  even  temporary  successes  over 
the  invaders :  the  new  immigrants  were  not  likely 
to  find  land  vacant  for  their  occupation  among 
their  kinsmen  who  had  long  been  settled  here, 
though  well-assured  of  their  co-operation  in  any 

'  Woden  in  the  gentile  form  of  a  horse,  Hengest,  equus  admissariiis, 
the  brother  of  Hors,  and  father  of  a  line  in  which  names  of  horses  form 
a  distinguishing  part  of  the  roj'al  appellatives.  It  is  hardly  necessary 
to  remind  the  classical  reader  of  Poseidon  in  his  favourite  shape, 
the  shape  in  which  he  contended  with  Athene  and  mingled  with 
Ceres.  In  these  remarks  on  Geoffryand  his  sources,  I  do  not  mean  to 
deny  the  obligation  under  which  the  reader  of  romance  has  been  laid 
by  him ;  only  to  reject  everything  like  historical  authority.  It  is  from 
the  countrymen  of  Geoffry  that  we  have  also  gained  the  marvellous 
superstructure  of  imagination  which  has  supplied  the  tales  of  that  time, 
"  when  Charlemagne  with  all  his  peerage  fell  by  Fontarabia,"  and  which 
is  recognised  by  history  in  the  very  short  entry,  "  In  quo  proelioEggi- 
hardus  regiae  mensae  praepositus,  Anselmus  comes  palatii,  et  Hruod- 
landus  Brittanici  limitis  praefectus,  cum  aliis  compluribus  interfi- 
cinntur."  Einhardi  Vita  Karoli,  §  9.  Pertz,  ii.  448.  Let  us  be  grateful 
for  the  Orlando  Innamorato  and  Eurioso,  but  not  make  history  of 
them. 

c2     • 


20  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

attempt  to  wrest  new  settlements  from  the  British. 
But  no  authentic  record  remains  of  the  slow  and 
gradual  progress  that  would  have  attended  the  con- 
quest of  a  brave  and  united  people,  nor  is  any  such 
consistent  with  the  accounts  the  British  authors 
have  left  of  the  disorganized  and  disarmed  condi- 
tion of  the  population.  A  skirmish,  carried  on  by 
very  small  numbers  on  either  side,  seems  generally 
to  have  decided  the  fate  of  a  campaign.  Steadily 
from  east  to  west,  from  south  to  north,  the  sharp 
axes  and  long  swords  of  the  Teutons  hewed  their 
way :  wherever  opposition  was  offered,  it  ended  in 
the  retreat  of  the  aborigines  to  the  mountains, — 
fortresses  whence  it  was  impossible  to  dislodge 
them,  and  from  which  they  sometimes  descended 
to  attempt  a  hopeless  effort  for  the  liberty  of  their 
country  or  revenge  upon  their  oppressors.  The 
ruder  or  more  generous  of  their  number  may  have 
preferred  exile  and  the  chances  of  emigration  to 
subjection  at  home  1;  but  the  mass  of  the  people, 
accustomed  to  Eoman  rule  or  the  oppression  of 
native  princes^,  probably  suffered  little  by  a  change 
of  masters,  and  did  little  to  avoid  it.  At  even  a 
later  period  an  indignant  bard  could  pour  out  his 
patriotic  reproaches  upon  the  Loegrians  who  had 

'  Many  beyond  a  doubt  found  a  refuge  in  Brittany  among  tbeir 
bretbren  and  co-religionists  wbo  bad  long  been  settled  tbere.  Oonf. 
Ermold.  Nigel,  bk.  iii.  v.  11.  in  Pertz,  ii.  490.  Tbe  Cumbrians  and 
Welsh  had  probably  been  as  little  subdued  by  the  Romans  as  they 
were  by  the  Saxons. 

'  Gildas  does  not  spare  the  native  princes:  see  Epist.  querul. 
passim  ;  and  when  every  excuse  has  been  made  for  the  exaggerations 
of  an  honest  zeal,  we  must  believe  the  condition  of  the  people  to  have 
been  bad  in  the  extreme. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  21 

condescended  to  become  Saxons.  We  learn  that  at 
first  the  condition  of  the  British  under  the  German 
rule  was  fair  and  easy,  and  only  rendered  harsher 
in  punishment  of  their  unsuccessful  attempts  at 
rebellion  1 ;  and  the  laws  of  Ini,  a  Westsaxon  king, 
show  that  in  the  territories  subject  to  his  rule,  and 
bordering  upon  the  yet  British  lands,  the  Welsh- 
man occupied  the  place  of  a,  perioecian  rather  than 
a  lielot^.  Nothing  in  fact  is  more  common,  or  less 
true,  than  the  exaggerated  account  of  total  exter- 
minations and  miserable  oppressions,  in  the  tradi- 
tional literature  of  conquered  nations ;  and  we  may 
very  safely  appeal  even  to  the  personal  appearance 
of  the  peasantry  in  many  parts  of  England,  as  evi- 
dence how  much  Keltic  blood  was  permitted  to  sub- 
sist and  even  to  mingle  with  that  of  the  ruling  Ger- 
mans ;  while  the  signatures  to  very  early  charters 
supply  us  with  names  assuredly  not  Teutonic,  and 
therefore  probably  borne  by  persons  of  Keltic  race, 
occupying  positions  of  dignity  at  the  courts  of 
Anglosaxon  kings  ^. 

'  "  Quorum  illi  qui  Northwallos,  id  est  Aquilonales  Britones  diceTjan- 
tur,  parti  Westsaxonum  regum  obvenerant.  Illi  quondam  consuetis 
servitiis  seduli,  diu  nil  asperum  retulere,  sed  tunc  rebellionem  medi- 
tantes,  Kentuuinus  rex  tarn  anxia  caede  perdomuit,  ut  nihil  ulterius 
sperarent.  Quare  et  ultima  malorum  accessit  captivis  tributaria  func- 
tio ;  ut  qui  antea  nee  solam  umbram  palpabant  libertatis,  nunc  iugum 
aubiectionis  palam  ingemiscerent."  W.  Malmsb.  Vit.  Aldhelmi,  Ang. 
Sac.  ii.  14. 

2  Leg.  Ini,  §  32,  33. 

^  See  a  tract  of  the  author's  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Archaeological 
Institute,  1845,  on  Anglosaxon  names.  From  some  very  interesting 
papers  read  by  the  Rev.  R.  Garnett  before  the  Philological  Society  in 
1843  1844,  we  learn  that  a  considerable  proportion  of  the  words  which 
denote  the  daily  processes  of  agriculture,  domestic  life,  and  generally 
indoor  and  outdoor  service,  are  borrowed   by  us   from   the  Keltic. 


22 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 


From  what  has  preceded  it  will  be  inferred  that 
I  look  upon  the  genuine  details  of  the  German 
conquests  in  England  as  irrevocably  lost  to  us. 
So  extraordinary  a  success  as  the  conquest  of  this 
island  by  bands  of  bold  adventurers  from  the  con- 
tinent, whose  cognate  tribes  had  already  come  into 
fatal  collision  with  not  only  the  Gallic  provincials, 
but  even  the  levies  of  the  city  itself  ^,  could  hardly 
have  passed  unnoticed  by  the  historians  of  the  em- 
pire :  we  have  seen  however  that  only  Prosper  Tyro 
and  Procopius  notice  this  great  event,  and  that 
too  in  terms  which  by  no  means  necessarily  imply 

Philolog.  Trang.  i.  171  seq.  The  amount  of  Keltic  words  yet  current 
in  Englisli  may  of  course  te  accounted  for  in  part,  without  the  hypo- 
thesis of  an  actual  incorporation ;  but  many  have  unquestionably  been 
borrowed,  and  serve  to  show  that  a  strong  Keltic  element  was  permitted 
to  remain  and  iniiuenoe  the  Saxon.  That  it  did  so  especially  in  local 
names  is  not  of  much  importance,  as  it  may  be  doubted  whether  con- 
quest ever  succeeded  in  changing  these  entirely,  in  any  country. 

'  I  borrow  from  Hermann  Miiller's  instructive  work,  Der  Lex  Sahca 
und  der  Lex  Angliorum  et  Werinorum  Alter  und  Heimat,  p.  269,  the 
following  chronological  notices  of  the  Franks  in  their  relations  to  the 
Roman  empire : — 

A.D.  250.  Franks,  the  inhabitants  of  marshes,  become  known  by  their 
predatory  excursions. 

280.  Franks,  transplanted  to  Asia,  return. 

287.  Franks  occupy  Batavia ;  are  expelled. 

201.  Franks  in  the  Gallic  provinces. 

306.  Constantino  chastises  the  Franks.     They  enjoy  consideration 
in  the  service  of  Eome. 

340.  Wars  and  treaties  with  the  Franks. 

356.  Julian  treats  with  the  Franks  on  the  lower  Rhine. 

358.  He  treats  with  Franks  in  Toxandria, 

359.  Salic  Franks  in  Batavia. 

395.  Stilieho  treats  with  the  Franks. 

408.  The  Vandals  invading  Gaul  are  defeated  by  the  Franks. 

414.  War  with  the  Franks. 

416.  The  Franks  possess  the  Rhine-land. 

437.  Ohlojo  bursts  into  Gaul  and  takes  Cambray. 


CH.  I.J  SAXOX  AND  WELSH  TEADITIONS.  23 

a  state  of  things  consistent  with  the  received  ac- 
counts.     The  former  only  says  indefinitely,  that 
about  441,  Britain  was  finally  reduced  under  the 
Saxon  power ;  while  Procopius  clearly  shows  how 
very  imperfect,  indeed  fabulous,  an  account  he  had 
received  i.     Could  we  trust  the  accuracy  and  cri- 
tical spirit  of  this  writer,  whom  no  less  a  man  than 
Gibbon  has  condescended  to  call  the  gravest  histo- 
rian of  his  time,  we  might  indeed  imagine  that  we 
had  recovered  one  fact  of  our  earliest  history,  which 
brought  with  it  all  the  attractions  of  romance.    An 
Angle  princess  had  been   betrothed    to    Eadiger, 
prince  of  the  Varni,  a  Teutonic  tribe  whose  seats 
are  subsequently  described  to  have  been  about  the 
shores  of  the  Northern  Ocean  and  upon  the  Rhine, 
by   which   alone   they   were   separated    from   the 
Franks  2.     Tempted  however  partly  by  motives  of 
policy,  partly  perhaps  by  maxims  of  heathendom, 
he  deserted  his  promised  bride  and  oifered  his  hand 
to  Theodechild,  the  widow  of  his  father,  and  sister 
of  the  Austrasian  Theodberht^.     Like  the  epic  he- 
roine Brynhildr,  the  deserted  lady  was  not  disposed 


'  Procop.  Bel.  Got.  iv.  20. 

^  OvapvoL  jikv  v7rep"la-Tpov  irOTajiov  "ihpvVTaf  SirjKovcri  6?  axpt  re  es 
^QKeavbv  tov  apKTaov,  Km  iroTapbv  *Pijvov  ocTTrep  avTovs  re  dwpt^ei,  Kal 
^pdyyovs  kol  rdXXa  eSvrj,  a  ravTrj  IbpvvTai.  qvtol  diravTcs,  oa-oi  TOnaXaiov 
dfi(j>L  'P^uov  EKarepcoBev  irorap-ov  aKrjvro^  Idcov  pev  tlvos  opoparos  eKaa-Toi 

pcTe\dyxavov sttlkolv^s   de   Veppavoi  iKoKodvTo  d7ravTes...Ovapvot  fie 

Kal  ^pdyyoi  tovtX  povov  tov  ^Ftjvov  to  vdap  psTa^ii  e^ovciv.  Bel.  Grot, 
iv.  20. 

^  Procopius  tells  us  that  this  was  done  by  the  dying  father's  advice, 
and  in  consonance  with  the  law  of  the  people.  'FaSiyep  8e  6  nais  ^vvot- 
Kt^ecrBo}  Ty  prjTpvia  toXolttov  ttj  avTov,  Kaddirep  6  iraTpios  Tjfiiv  i^i7/(Tt 
vopos.    Ibid.  Conf.  Bed.  Hist.  Eccl.  ii.  5. 


24  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

to  pass  over  the  affront  thus  offered  to  her  charms. 
With  an  immense  armament  she  sailed  for  the 
mouth  of  the  Ehine.  A  victory  placed  the  faithless 
bridegroom  a  prisoner  in  her  power.  But  desh'e  of 
revenge  gave  place  to  softer  emotions,  and  the  tri- 
umphant princess  was  content  to  dismiss  her  rival 
and  compel  her  repentant  suitor  to  perform  his  en- 
gagement. 

To  deny  all  historical  foundation  to  this  tale 
would  perhaps  be  carrying  scepticism  to  an  un- 
reasonable extent.  Yet  the  most  superficial  exa- 
mination proves  that  in  all  its  details,  at  least,  it  is 
devoid  of  accuracy.  The  period  during  which  the 
events  described  must  be  placed i,  is  between  the 
years  534  and  547 ;  and  it  is  very  certain  that  the 
Varni  were  not  settled  at  that  time  where  Proco- 
pius  has  placed  them^ :  on  that  locality  we  can 
only  look  for  Saxons.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say 
that  a  fleet  of  four  hundred  ships,  and  an  army  of 
one  hundred  thousand  Angles,  led  by  a  woman,  are 
not  data  upon  which  we  could  implicitly  rely  in 
calculating  either  the  political  or  military  power  of 
any  English  principality  at  the  commencement  of 
the  sixth  century ;  or  that  ships  capable  of  carrying 
two  hundred  and  fifty  men  each,  had  hardly  been 
launched  at  that  time  from  any  port  in  England. 
Still  I  am  not  altogether  disposed  to  deny  the  pos- 


1  The  years  534  and  547  are  the  extreme  terms  of  Theodberht's 
reign.     See  Gib.  Dec.  bk.  38. 

2  This  fact,  which  has  escaped  the  accurate,  and  generally  merciless, 
criticism  of  Gibbon,  is  very  clearly  proved  by  Zeuss,  Die  Deutschen, 
etc.  pp.  361,  362. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TEADITIONS.  25 

sibility  of  predatory  expeditions  from  the  more  set- 
tled parts  of  the  island,  adjoining  the  eastern  coasts. 
Gregory  of  Tours  tells  us  that  about  the  same  time 
as  that  assigned  to  this  Angle  expedition,  Theodoric 
the  Frank,  assisted  by  Sueves,  Saxons  and  even 
Bavarians,  cruelly  devastated  the  territory  of  the 
Thuringians;  and  although  it  vpould  be  far  more 
natural  to  seek  these  Saxons  in  their  old  settle- 
ments upon  the  continent,  we  have  the  authority 
of  Rudolf  or  Meginhart,  that  they  were  in  fact  in- 
habitants of  this  island^. 

But  if  such  difficulties  exist  in  dealing  with  the 
events  of  periods  which  are  within  the  ascertained 
limits  of  our  chronological  system,  and  which  have 
received  the  illustration  of  contemporary  history, 
what  shall  we  say  of  those  whereof  the  time,  nay 


1  The  passage  is  sufficiently  important  to  deserve  transcription  at 
leng;th.  "  Saxonum  gens,  sicut  tradit  antiquitas,  ab  Anglis  Britanniae 
incolis  egTessa,  per  Oceanum  navigans  Germaniae  litoribus  studio  et 
necessitate  quaerendarum  sedium  appulsa  est,  in  loco  qui  vocatur  Ha- 
duloha,  eo  tempore  quo  Thiotricus  rex  Francorum  contra  Irminfridum 
generum  suura,  ducem  Thuringorum,  dimicans,  terram  eorum  ferro  vas- 
tavit  et  igni.  Et  cum  iam  duobus  proeliis  ancipiti  pugna  ineertaque 
victoria  miserabili  suorum  cede  decertassent,  Thiotricus  spe  vincendi 
frustratus,  misit  legates  ad  Saxones,  quorum  dux  erat  Hadugoto.  Au- 
divit  enim  causam  adveutus  eorum,  promissisque  pro  victoria  habitandi 
sedibiis,  conduxit  eos  in  adiutorium  ;  quibus  secum  quasi  iam  pro  liber- 
tate  et  patria  fortiter  dimicantibus,  superavit  adversaries,  vastatisque 
indigenis  et  ad  internitionem  peue  deletis,  terram  eorum  iuxta  poUicita- 
tionem  suam  victoribus  delegavit.  Qui  eam  sorte  dividentes,  cum  multi 
exeis  in  bello  ceoidissent,  et  pro  raritate  eorum  tota  ab  eis  oocupari  non 
potuit,  partem  illiiis,  et  eam  quam  maxime  quae  respicit  orientem,  oo- 
lonis  tradebant,  singuli  pro  sorte  sua,  sub  tribute  exercendam.  Caetera 
vero  loca  ipsi  possiderunt."  Transl.  Sci.  Alexandri,  Pertz,  ii.  674.  This 
was  written  about  863.  Possibly  some  ancient  and  now  lost  epic  had 
recorded  the  wars  of  the  Saxon  Hea^ogeat. 


26  THE  SAXONS  EST  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

even  the  locality  is  unknown  1  What  account  shall 
we  render  of  those  occurrences,  which  exist  for  us 
only  in  the  confused  forms  given  to  them  by  suc- 
cessive ages ;  some,  mischievously  determined  to 
reduce  the  abnormal  to  rule,  the  extraordinary  to 
order,  as  measured  by  their  narrow  scheme  of  ana- 
logy ]  Is  it  not  obvious  that  to  seek  for  historic 
truth  in  such  traditions,  is  to  be  guilty  of  violating 
every  principle  of  historic  logic'?  Such  was  the 
course  -pursued  by  our  early  chroniclers,  but  it  is 
not  one  that  we  can  be  justified  in  repeating.  In 
their  view  no  doubt,  the  annals  of  the  several  Saxon 
kingdoms  did  supply  points  of  definite  information ; 
but  we  are  now  able  to  take  the  measure  of  their 
credulity,  and  to  apply  severer  canons  of  criticism 
to  the  facts  themselves  which  they  believed  and  re- 
corded. If  it  was  the  tendency  and  duty  of  their 
age  to  deliver  to  us  the  history  that  they  found,  it 
is  the  tendency  and  duty  of  ours  to  enquire  upon 
what  foundation  that  history  rests,  and  what  amount 
of  authority  it  may  justly  claim. 

The  little  that  Beda  could  collect  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  eighth  century,  formed  the  basis  of  all 
the  subsequent  reports.  Though  not  entirely  free 
from  the  prejudices  of  his  time,  and  yielding  ready 
faith  to  tales  which  his  frame  of  mind  disposed  him 
willingly  to  credit,  he  seems  to  have  bestowed  some 
pains  upon  the  investigation  and  critical  apprecia- 
tion of  the  materials  he  collected.  But  the  limits 
of  the  object  he  had  proposed  to  himself,  viz.  the 
ecclesiastical  history  of  the  island,  not  only  imposed 
upon  him  the  necessity  of  commencing  his  detailed 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  27 

narrative  at  a  comparatively  late  period  i,  but  led 
him  to  reject  much  that  may  have  been  well  known 
to  him,  of  our  secular  history.  The  deeds  of  pagan 
and  barbarous  chieftains  offered  little  to  attract  his 
attention  or  command  his  sympathies ;  indeed  were 
little  likely  to  be  objects  of  interest  to  those  from 
whom  his  own  information  was  generally  derived. 
Beda's  account,  copied  and  recopied  both  at  home 
and  abroad,  was  swelled  by  a  few  vague  data  from 
the  regnal  annals  of  the  kings  ;  these  were  probably 
increased  by  a  few  traditions,  ill  understood  and  ill 
applied,  which  belonged  exclusively  to  the  epical 
or  mythological  cycles  of  our  own  several  tribes 
and  races,  and  the  cognate  families  of  the  continent ; 
and  finally  the  whole  was  elaborated  into  a  mass  of 
inconsistent  fables,  on  the  admission  of  Cymric  or 
Armorican  tales  by  Norman  writers,  who  for  the 
most  part  felt  as  little  interest  in  the  fate  of  the 
Briton  as  the  Saxon,  and  were  as  little  able  to  ap- 
preciate the  genuine  history  of  the  one  as  of  the 
other  race.  Thus  Woden,  Bseldseg,  Geat,  Scyld, 
Sceaf  and  Beowa  gradually  found  their  way  into 
the  royal  genealogies  ;  one  by  one,  Brutus,  Aurelius 
Ambrosius,  Uther  Pendragon  and  Arthur,  Hen- 
gest,  Hors  and  Vortigern,  all  became  numbered 
among  historical  personages ;  and  from  heroes  of 
respective  epic  poems  sunk  down  into  kings  and 

'  Beda  attempts  to  give  some  account  of  the  early  state  of  Britain 
previoiis  to  tlie  arrival  of  Augustine ;  a  few  quotations  from  Solinus, 
GUdas,  and  a  legendary  life  of  St.  Germanus,  comprise  however  nearly 
the  whole  of  his  collections.  Either  he  could  find  no  more  information, 
or  he  did  not  think  it  worthy  of  belief.  He  even  speaks  douhtfidly  of 
the  tale  of  Hengest.  Hist.  Eccl.  i,  15. 


28  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

warriors,  who  lived  and  fought  and  died  upon  the 
soil  of  England. 

We  are  ignorant  what  fasti  or  mode  even  of 
reckoning  the  revolutions  of  seasons  prevailed  in 
England,  previous  to   the    introduction   of  Chris- 
tianity.    We  know  not  how  any  event  before  the 
year  600  was  recorded,  or  to  what  period  the  me- 
mory of  man  extended.     There  may  have  been  rare 
annals :  there  may  have  been  poems :  if  such  there 
were  they  have  perished,  and  have  left  no  trace 
behind,  unless  we  are  to  attribute  to  them  such 
scanty  notices  as  the  Saxon  chronicle  adds  to  Beda's 
account.     From  such  sources  however  little  could 
have  been  gained  of  accurate  information  either  as 
to  the  real  internal  state,  the  domestic  progress, 
or  development  of  a  people.      The  dry,  bare  en- 
tries of  the  chronicles  in  historical  periods  may 
supply  the  means  of  judging  what  sort  of  annals 
were  likely  to  exist  before  the  general  introduction 
of  the  Eoman  alphabet  and  parchment,  while,  in 
all  probability,  runes  supplied  the  place  of  letters, 
and  stones,  or  the  beech-woodi  from  which  their  name 
is  derived,  of  hooks.     Again,  the  traditions  embo- 
died in  the  epic,   are  preeminently  those  of  kings 
and   princes :    they  are  heroical,  devoted  to  cele- 
brate the  divine  or  half-divine  founders  of  a  race, 
the  fortunes  of  their  warlike  descendants,  the  man- 
ners and  mode  of  life  of  military  adventurers,  not 
the  obscure  progress,  household  peace  and  orderly 
habits  of  the  humble  husbandman.       They  are  full 
of  feasts  and  fighting,  shining   arms  and   golden 
goblets :  the  gods  mingle  among  men  almost  their 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSIi  TRADITIONS.  29 

equals,  share  in  the  same  pursuits,  are  animated  by 
the  same  passions  of  love,  and  jealousy  and  hatred ; 
or,  blending  the  divine  with  the  mortal  nature,  be- 
come the  founders  of  races,  kingly  because  derived 
from  divinity  itself.  But  one  race  knows  little  of 
another  or  its  traditions,  and  cares  as  little  for  them. 
Alliances  or  wars  alone  bring  them  in  contact  with 
one  another ;  and  the  terms  of  intercourse  between 
the  races  will  for  the  most  part  determine  the  cha- 
racter under  which  foreign  heroes  shall  be  admitted 
into  the  national  epos,  or  whether  they  shall  be 
admitted  at  all.  All  history  then,  which  is  founded 
in  any  degree  upon  epical  tradition  (and  national 
history  is  usually  more  or  less  so  founded)  must  be 
to  that  extent  imperfect,  if  not  inaccurate;  only 
when  corrected  by  the  written  references  of  con- 
temporaneous authors,  can  we  assign  any  certainty 
to  its  records  ^. 

Let  us  apply  these  observations  to  the  early 
events  of  Saxon  history :  of  Kent  indeed  we  have 
the  vague  and  uncertain  notices  which  I  have  men- 
tioned :  even  more  vague  and  uncertain  are  those 
of  Sussex  and  Wessex.  Of  the  former,  we  learn 
that  in  the  year  477,  jEUi,  with  three  sons,  Cymen, 
Wlencing  and  Cissa,  landed  in  Sussex ;  that  in  the 
year  485  they  defeated  the  Welsh,  and  that  in  491 
they  destroyed  the  population  of  Anderida^.  Not 
another  word  is  there  about  Sussex,  before  the  ar- 


^  The  Homeric  poems  and  those  of  the  Edda  are  obvious  examples  : 
but  nothing  can  be  more  instructive  than  the  history  which  Livy  and 
Saxo  Grammaticus  have  woven  out  of  similar  materials. 

^  Sax.  Ohron.  under  the  respective  dates. 


30  THE  SAJCOXS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

rival  of  Augustine,  except  a  late  assertion  of  the 
military  preeminence  of  ^Ui  among  the  Saxon 
chieftains.  The  events  of  Wessex  are  somewhat 
better  detailed ;  we  learn  that  in  495  two  nobles, 
Cerdic  and  Cyneric,  came  to  England,  and  landed 
at  Cerdices  ora,  where  on  the  same  day  they  fought 
a  battle:  that  in  501  they  were  followed  by  a  noble 
named  Port,  who  with  his  two  sons  Bieda  and 
Mgegla  made  a  forcible  landing  at  Portsmouth: 
and  that  in  508  they  gained  a  great  battle  over  a 
British  king,  whom  they  slew  together  with  five 
thousand  of  his  people.  In  514  Stuff  and  Wihtgar, 
their  nephews,  brought  them  a  reinforcement  of 
three  ships  ;  in  519  they  again  defeated  the  Britons, 
and  established  the  kingdom  of  Wessex.  In  527  a 
new  victory  is  recorded :  in  530,  the  Isle  of  Wight 
was  subdued  and  given  to  Wihtgar;  and  in  534, 
Cerdic  died,  and  was  succeeded  by  Cyneric,  who 
reigned  twenty-six  years  i.  In  544  Wihtgar  died. 
A  victory  of  Cyneric  in  552  and  556,  and  Ceawlin's 
accession  to  the  throne  of  Wessex  are  next  recorded. 
Wars  of  the  Westsaxon  kings  are  noted  in  568, 
571,.  577,  584.  Prom  590  to  595  a  king  of  that 
race  named  Ceol  is  mentioned :  in  591  we  learn 
the  expulsion  of  Ceawlin  from  power :  in  593  the 
deaths  of  Ceawlin,  Cwichelm  and  Crida  are  men- 
tioned, and  in  597,  the  year  of  Augustine's  arrival, 
we  learn  that  Cedlwulf  ascended  the  throne  of 
Wessex. 

Meagre  as  these  details  are,  they  far  exceed  what 

•  Cerdic  and  Cyneric  landed  in  495,  after  forty  j-ears  Cerdic  dies, 
and  Cyneric  reigns  twenty-six  more ! 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  31 

is  related  of  Northumberland,  Essex  or  East- 
anglia.  In  547  we  are  told  that  Ida  began  to  reign 
in  the  first  of  these  kingdoms  ;  and  that  he  was  suc- 
ceeded in  560  by  iEUi :  that  after  a  reign  of  thirty 
years^,  he  died  in  588  and  was  succeeded  by  M^e\- 
ric,  who  again  in  593  was  succeeded  by  ^E-SelfriS. 
This  is  all  we  learn  of  Northumbria ;  of  Mercia, 
Essex,  Eastanglia,  and  the  innumerable  kingdoms 
that  must  have  been  comprised  under  these  general 
appellations,  we  hear  not  a  single  word. 

If  this  be  all  that  we  can  now  recover  of  events, 
a  great  number  of  which  must  have  fallen  within 
the  lives  of  those  to  whom  Augustine  preached, 
what  credit  shall  we  give  to  the  inconsistent  ac- 
counts of  earlier  actions  \  How  shall  we  supply 
the  almost  total  want  of  information  respecting  the 
first  settlements  1  What  explanation  have  we  to 
give  of  the  alliance  between  Jutes,  Angles  and 
Saxons  which  preceded  the  invasions  of  England  \ 
What  knowledge  will  these  records  supply  of  the 
real  number  and  quality  of  the  chieftains,  the  lan- 
guage and  blood  of  the  populations  who  gradually 
spread  themselves  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Frith 
of  Forth  ;  of  the  remains  of  Koman  cultivation,  or 
the  amount  of  British  power  with  which  they  had 
to  contend  ^  of  the  vicissitudes  of  good  and  evil  for- 
tune which  visited  the  independent  principalities, 
before  they  were  swallowed  up  in  the  kingdoms  of 

'  The  ctronology  is  inconsistent  throughout,  and  it  is  inconceivable 
that  it  should  have  been  otherwise.  Beda  himself  assigns  diiFerent 
dates  to  the  arrival  of  the  Saxons,  though  it  is  the  sera  from  which  he 
frequently  reckons. 


32  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  heptarchy,  or  the  extent  of  the  influence  which 
they  retained  after  that  event  ]  On  all  these  several 
points  we  are  left  entirely  in  the  dark ;  and  yet 
these  are  facts  which  it  most  imports  us  to  know, 
if  we  would  comprehend  the  growth  of  a  society 
which  endoired  for  at  least  seven  hundred  years  in 
England,  and  formed  the  foundation  of  that  in 
which  we  live. 

Lappenberg  has  devoted  several  pages  of  his 
elaborate  history^  to  an  investigation  of  the  Kent- 
ish legends,  with  a  view  to  demonstrate  their  tra- 
ditional, that  is  unhistorical,  character.  He  has 
shown  that  the  best  authorities  are  inconsistent 
with  one  another  and  with  themselves,  in  assigning 
the  period  of  Hengest's  arrival  in  England.  Care- 
fully comparing  the  dates  of  the  leading  events,  as 
given  from  the  soundest  sources,  he  has  proved  be- 
yond a  doubt,  that  all  these  periods  are  calculated 
upon  a  mythical  number  8,  whose  multiples  recur  in 
every  year  assigned.  Thus  the  periods  of  twenty- 
four,  sixteen,  eight  and  particularly  forty  years 
meet  us  at  every  turn ;  and  a  somewhat  similar 
tendency  may,  I  think,  be  observed  in  the  earlier 
dates  of  Westsaxon  history  cited  in  a  preceding 
page.  It  is  also  very  probable  that  the  early  ge- 
nealogies of  the  various  Anglosaxon  kings  were 
arranged  in  series  of  eight  names,  including  always 
the  great  name  of  Woden^. 

The  result  of  all  these  enquiries  is,  to  guard 

'  Thorpe's  Lappenb.  i.  78  seq. 

°  Beowulf,  ii.  Postscript  to  the  Preface,  xxvii. 


CH.  I.]  SAXON  AND  WELSH  TRADITIONS.  33 

against  plausible  details  which  can  only  mislead 
us.  If  we  endeavour  to  destroy  the  credit  of  tradi- 
tions which  have  long  existed,  it  is  only  to  put 
something  in  their  place,  inconsistent  with  them, 
but  of  more  value :  to  reduce  them  to  what  they 
really  are,  lest  their  authority  should  render  the 
truth  more  obscure,  and  its  pursuit  more  difficult 
than  is  necessary ;  but  to  use  them  wherever  they 
seem  capable  of  guiding  our  researches,  and  are 
not  irreconcilable  with  our  other  conclusions. 

Far  less  in  the  fabulous  records  adopted  by  hi- 
storians, than  in  the  divisions  of  the  land  itself, 
according  to  the  populations  that  occupied  it,  and 
the  rank  of  their  several  members,  must  the  truth 
he  sought.  The  names  of  the  tribes  and  families 
have  survived  in  the  localities  where  they  settled, 
while  their  peculiar  forms  of  customary  law  have 
become  as  it  were  melted  together  into  one  gene- 
ral system ;  and  the  national  legends  which  each  of 
them  most  probably  possessed,  have  either  perished 
altogether,  or  are  now  to  be  traced  only  in  proper 
names  which  fill  up  the  genealogies  of  the  royal 
families  ^.     To  these  local  names   I  shall    return 

'  Geat,  the  eponymus  of  a  race,  G-eataa,  is  found  in  the  common 
genealogy  previous  to  Woden;  his  legend  is  alludedto  in  the  Codex 
Exoniensis,  pp.  377,  378,  together  with  those  of  Deodric,  Wfland  and 
Eormanric.  Witta  in  the  Kentish  line  is  foimd  in  the  Traveller's  Song, 
1.  43.  Offa  in  the  Mercian  genealogy  occurs  in  the  same  poem,  1.  69, 
in  the  fine  epos  of  Beowulf,  and  in  Saxo  Grammaticus.  Fin  the  son 
of  Folowalda  is  one  of  the  heroes  of  Beowulf  Scyld,  Sceaf  and  Bedwa 
are  found  in  the  same  poem,  etc.  These  facts  render  it  probable 
that  many  other,  if  not  all  the  names  in  the  genealogies  were  equally 
derived  from  the  peculiar  national  or  gentile  legends,  although  the 
epic  poems  in  which  they  were  celebrated  being  now  lost,  we  are  un- 
able to  point  to  them  as  we  have  done  to  others. 

VOL.    I.  D 


34  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

hereafter ;  they  will  furnish  a  strong  confirmation 
of  what  has  been  advanced  in  this  chapter  as  to 
the  probability  of  an  early  and  wide  dispersion 
of  Teutonic  settlers  in  Britain. 


35 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  MARK. 

All  that  we  learn  of  the  original  principle  of 
settlement,  prevalent  either  in  England  or  on  the 
continent  of  Europe,  among  the  nations  of  Ger- 
manic blood,  rests  upon  two  main  foundations ; 
first,  the  possession  of  land ;  second,  the  distinction 
of  rank ;  and  the  public  law  of  every  Teutonic  tribe 
implies  the  dependence  of  one  upon  the  other 
principle,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent.  Even  as  he 
who  is  not  free  can,  at  first,  hold  no  land  within  the 
limits  of  the  community,  so  is  he  who  holds  no 
land  therein,  not  fully  free,  whatever  his  personal 
rank  or  character  may  be.  Thus  far  the  Teutonic 
settler  differs  but  little  from  the  ancient  Spartiate 
or  the  comrade  of  Romulus. 

The  particular  considerations  which  arise  from  the 
contemplation  of  these  principles  in  their  progres- 
sive development,  will  find  their  place  in  the  seve- 
ral chapters  of  this  Book :  it  deals  with  land  held 
in  community,  and  severalty ;  with  the  nature  and 
accidents  of  tenure  ;  with  the  distinction  and  privi- 
leges of  the  various  classes  of  citizens,  the  free,  the 
noble  and  the  serf;  and  with  the  institutions  by 
which  a  mutual  guarantee  of  life,  honour  and  peace- 
ful possession  was  attempted  to  be  secured  among 

D  2 


33  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  Anglosaxons.  These  are  the  incunabula,  first 
principles  and  rudiments  of  the  English  law^;  and 
in  these  it  approaches,  and  assimilates  to,  the  sy- 
stem which  the  German  conquerors  introduced  into 
every  state  which  they  founded  upon  the  ruins  of 
the  Eoman  power. 

As  land  may  be  held  by  many  men  in  common, 
or  by  several  households,  under  settled  conditions 
it  is  expedient  to  examine  separately  the  nature 
and  character  of  these  tenures :  and  first  to  enquire 
into  the  forms  of  possession  in  common ;  for  upon 
this  depends  the  political  being  of  the  state,  its 
constitutional  law,  and  its  relative  position  towards 
other  states.  Among  the  Anglosaxons  land  so  held 
in  common  was  designated  by  the  names  Mark,  and 
Ga  or  Shire. 

The  smallest  and  simplest  of  these  common  di- 
visions is  that  which  we  technically  call  a  Mark  or 
March  (mearc) ;  a  word  less  frequent  in  the  Anglo- 
saxon  than  the  German  muniments,  only  because 
the  system  founded  upon  what  it  represents  yielded 
in  England  earlier  than  in  Germany  to  extraneous 
influences.  This  is  the  first  general  division,  the 
next  in  order  to  the  private  estates  or  alods  of  the 
Markmen :  as  its  name  denotes,  it  is  something 
marked  out  or  defined,  having  settled  boundaries  ; 
something  serving  as  a  sign  to  others,  and  distin- 
guished by  signs.  It  is  the  plot  of  land  on  which 
a  greater  or  lesser  number  of  free  men  have  set- 
tled for  purposes  of  cultivation,  and  for  the  sake 
of  mutual  profit  and  protection ;  and  it  comprises  a 

1  "  Incunabula  et  rudimenta  virtutis."     Cic.  de  Off. 


CH.  n.]  -    THE  MARK.  87 

portion  both  of  arable  land  and  pasture,  in  propor- 
tion to  the  numbers  that  enjoy  its  produce  ^. 

However  far  we  may  pursue  our  researches  into 
the  early  records  of  our  forefathers,  we  cannot  dis- 
cover a  period  at  which  this  organization  was 
unknown.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  original 
condition  of  the  Grerman  tribes,  tradition  and  his- 
tory alike  represent  them  to  us  as  living  partly  by 
agriculture,  partly  by  the  pasturing  of  cattle  ^.  They 
had  long  emerged  from  the  state  of  wandering 
herdsmen,  hunters  or  fishers,  when  they  first  at- 
tracted the  notice,  and  disputed  or  repelled  the 
power,  of  Rome.  The  peculiar  tendencies  of  vari- 
ous tribes  may  have  introduced  peculiar  modes  of 
placing  or  constructing  their  habitations;  but  of 
no  German  population  is  it  stated,  that  they  dwelt 
in  tents  like  the  Arab,  in  waggons  like  the  Scy- 
thian, or  in  earth-dug  caverns  like  the  troglodytes 
of  Wallachia :  the  same  authority  that  tells  of  some 
who  lived  alone  as  the  hill-side  or  the  fresh  spring 
pleased  them  ^,  notices  the  villages,  the  houses  and 
even  the  fortresses,  of  others. 

1  "Agri,  pro  numero  cultorum,  ab  universia  per  vicea  occupantur,  quos 
mox  inter  se,  secundum  dignationem,  partiuntur  ;  facilitatem  partiendi 
camporum  spatia  praestant."     Tac.  Germ.  26. 

^  "  Sola  terrae  seges  imperatur,"  they  raise  corn,  but  not  fruits  or 
vegetables.  Tac.  Germ.  26.  "  Frumenti  modum  dominus,  aut  pecoris, 
aut  vestis,  ut  colono,  iniungit ;  et  servus  hactenus  paret."  Ibid.  25. 
Hordeum,  and  frumentum.  Ibid.  23. 

^  "  Colunt  disoreti  ac  diversi,  ut  fons,  ut  campus,  ut  nemus  plaouit. 
Vicos  locant,  non  in  nostrum  morem,  connexia  et  cobaerentibus  aedifi- 
ciis ;  suam  quisque  domum  spatio  circumdat."  Tac.  Germ.  16.  Wben 
Tacitus  speaks  of  caverns  dug  in  the  earth,  it  is  as  granaries  (which 
may  to  this  day  be  seen  in  Hungary)  or  as  places  of  refuge  from  sud- 
den invasion. 


38  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Without  commerce,  means  of  extended  commu- 
nication, or  peaceful  neighbours,  the  Germans  can- 
not have  cultivated  their  fields  for  the  service  of 
strangers :  they  must  have  been  consumers,  as  they 
certainly  were  raisers,  of  bread-corn ;  early  docu- 
ments of  the  Anglosaxons  prove  that  considerable 
quantities  of  wheat  were  devoted  to  this  purpose. 
Even  the  serfs  and  domestic  servants  Avere  entitled 
to  an  allowance  of  bread,  in  addition  to  the  supply 
of  flesh  1 ;  and  the  large  quantities  of  ale  and  beer 
which  we  find  enumerated  among  the  dues  payable 
from  the  land,  or  in  gifts  to  religious  establish- 
ments, presume  a  very  copious  supply  of  cereals 
for  the  purpose  of  malting^.  But  it  is  also  certain 
that  our  forefathers  depended  very  materially  for 
subsistence  upon  the  herds  of  oxen,  sheep,  and 
especially  swine,  which  they  could  feed  upon  the 
unenclosed  meadows,  or  in  the  wealds  of  oak  and 
beech  which  covered  a  large  proportion  of  the  land. 
From  the  moment,  in  short,  when  we  first  learn 
anything  of  their  domestic  condition,  all  the  Ger- 
man tribes  appear  to  be  settled  upon  arable  land, 
surrounded  with  forest  pastures,  and  having  some 
kind  of  property  in  both. 

1  On  xii  monlSum  ^li  scealt  aillan  «mum  bedwan  men  vii  hund  hlafa 
•J  XX  hlafa,  biitan  morgemettum  -j  nonmettum  :  in  the  course  of  twelve 
months  thou  shalt  give  thy  ]>'d6w  or  serf,  seven  hundred  and  twenty 
loaves,  hesides  morning  meals  and  noon  meals.  Sal.  and  Sat.  p.  192. 
We  should  perhaps  read  seven  hundred  and  thirty,  which  would  give 
daily  two  loaves,  probably  of  rye  or  barley.  Compare  the  allowances 
mentioned  in  the  Rectitudines  Singularum  Personarum.  Anc.  Laws. 
Thorpe,  i.  432  sey. 

^  So  from  the  earliest  times:  "  Potui  humor  ex  hordeo  aut  frumento, 
in  quandam  similitudinem  vini  eorruptus."     Tac.  Germ.  23. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MARK.  39 

Caesar,  it  is  true,  denies  that  agriculture  was 
much  cultivated  among  the  Germans,  or  that  pro- 
perty in  the  arable  land  was  permitted  to  be  perma- 
nent 1 :  and,  although  it  seems  impolitic  to  limit  the 
efforts  of  industry,  by  diminishing  its  reward,  it  is 
yet  conceivable  that,  under  peculiar  circumstances, 
a  warlike  confederation  might  overlook  this  obvi- 
ous truth  in  their  dread  of  the  enervating  influences 
of  property   and   a  settled  life.     There  may  have 
been  difficulty  in  making  a  new  yearly  division  of 
land,  which  to  our  prejudices  seems  almost  impos- 
sible ;  yet  the  Arab  of  Oran  claims  only  the  produce 
of  the  seed  he  has  sown  2;  the  proprietor  in  the 
Jaghire  district  of  Madras  changes  his  lands  from 
year  to  year  ^ :  the  tribes  of  the  Afghans  submit  to 
a  new  distribution  even  after  a  ten  years' possession 
has  endeared  the  field  to  the  cultivator  ^ ;  Diodorus 
tells   us  that  the  Vaccaeans  changed  their   lands 
yearly  and  divided  the  produce  ^  ;  and  Strabo  attri- 
buted a  similar  custom  to  one  tribe  at  least  of  the 
lUyrian  Dalmatians,  after  a  period  of  seven  ^. 

But  so  deeply  does  the  possession  of  land  enter 
into  the  principle  of  all  the  Teutonic  institutions, 
that  I  cannot  bring  myself  to  believe  in  the  accu- 

1  "  Agriculturae  non  student :  maiorque  pars  yictus  eonim  in  lacte, 
caseo,  carne  consistit :  neque  quisquam  agri  modum  certum  aut  fines 
habet  proprios  ;  sed  magistratus  ac  principes  in  annos  singulos  gentibus 
cognationibusque  bominum,  qui  una  coierint,  quantum,  et  quo  loco 
visum  est,  agri  adtribuunt,  atque  anno  post  alio  transire  cogunt.  Eius 
rei  multas  adferunt  causas ;  ne,  adsidua  consuetudine  capti,  studium 
belli  gerimdi  agricultura  commutent;  "  etc.     Bell.  Gall.  vi.  22. 

2  The  administration  of  Oran.    Times  newspaper,  Aug.  24th,  1844. 

3  Fifth  Rep.,  Committee,1810,  p.  72.3,cited  in  Mill's  Brit.  India,  i.315. 
1  Elphinstone's  Oaubul,  ii.  17,  18,  19. 

'  Diodorus,  v.  34.  "  Strabo,  bk.  vii.  p.  315. 


40  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i 

racy  of  Caesar's  statement.     Like  his  previous  rash 
and  most  unfounded  assertion  respecting  the  Ger- 
man gods,  this  may  rest  only  upon  the  incorrect 
information  of  Gallic  provincials :  at  the  utmost  it 
can  be  applied  only  to  the  Suevi  and  their  warlike 
allies  1,  if  it  be  not  even  intended  to  be  confined  to 
the  predatory  bands  of  Ariovistus,  encamped  among 
the  defeated  yet   hostile  Sequani^.     The  equally 
well-known  passage  of  Tacitus,-^"  arva  per  annos 
mutant,  et  superest  ager^," — may  be  most  safely 
rendered  as  applying  to  the  common  mode  of  cul- 
ture ;  "  they  change  the  arable  froni  year  to  year, 
and  there  is  land  to  spare ;  "  that  is,  for  commons 
and  pasture :  but  it  does  not  amount  to  a  proof 
that  settled  property  in  land  was  not  a  part  of  the 
Teutonic  scheme ;  it  implies  no  more  than  this, 
that  within  the  Mark  which  was  the  property  of  all, 
what  was  this  year  one  man's  corn-land,  might  the 
next  be  another  man's  fallow;  a  process  very  in- 
telligible to  those  who  know  anything  of  the  system 
of  cultivation  yet  prevalent  in  parts  of  Germany, 
or  have  ever  had  any  interest  in  what  we  call  Lam- 
mas Meadows. 

Zeuss,  whose  admirable  work^  is  indispensable 
to  the  student  of  Teutonic  antiquity,  brings  toge- 
ther various  passages  to  show  that  at  some  early 
period,  the  account  given  by  Caesar  may  have 
conveyed  a  just  description  of  the  mode  of  life  in 

'  Harudes,  Maroomanni,  Tribocci,  Vangiones,  Nemetes  and  Sedusii. 
BeU.  GaU.  i.  51. 

2  Bell.  GaU.  i.  31.  s  Tac.  Germ.  26. 

*  Die  Deutschen  und  die  Nachbarstiimme,  von  Kaspar  Zeuss.  Miin- 
chen.  1837. 


CH.  n.]  THE  MARK.  41 

Germany  ^.  He  represents  its  inhabitants  to  himself 
as  something  between  a  settled  and  an  unsettled 
people.  What  they  may  have  been  in  periods  pre- 
vious to  the  dawn  of  authentic  history,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  say ;  but  all  that  we  really  know  of  them 
not  only  implies  a  much  more  advanced  state  of 
civilization,  but  the  long  continuance  and  tradition 
of  such  a  state.  We  cannot  admit  the  validity  of 
Zeuss'  reasoning,  or  escape  from  the  conviction 
that  it  mainly  results  from  a  desire  to  establish  his 
etymology  of  the  names  borne  by  the  several  con- 
federations, and  which  requires  the  hypothesis  of 
wandering  and  unsettled  tribes  ^. 

^  He  cites  tlie-  passage  from  Caesar  whicli  I  have  c[uoted,  and  also 
Bell.  GaU.  iv.  1,  wliicli  still  applies  only  to  tlie  Suevi.  His  next  evi- 
dence is  tlie  assertion  of  Tacitus  just  noticed.  His  third  is  from  Plu- 
tarch's Aemil.  Paul.  c.  12,  of  the  Bastamae :  iivSpEs  oi  yeapyeiv  eiSoVer, 
ov  irkiiv,  ovK  airb  noLfiviaiv  ^ijv  vefiovres,  aXX'  iv  epyov  Km  fiiav  T€)(yj}v  pe- 
XeTwvTCSf  del  fid^^etrdai  Ka\  Kparelv  Ta>v  avriTaTTOp-evtov,  A  people  with- 
out agriculture  or  commerce,  and  who  live  only  on  fighting,  may  be 
left  imdisturhed  in  the  realm  of  dreams  with  which  philosophers  are 
conversant.  Zeuss  proceeds  to  reason  upon  the  analogy  of  examples 
derived  from  notices  of  Britons,  Kelts  and  Wends,  in  Straho,  Polybius 
and  Dio  Cassius.     See  p.  52,  etc. 

^  Thus,  according  to  his  view,  Suevi  (Suap,  Swsef )  denotes  the  wan- 
derers ;  Wandal  also  the  wanderers.  Assuredly  if  nations  at  large  par- 
took of  such  habits,  single  tribes  could  not  have  derived  a  name  from 
the  custom.  How  much  more  easy  would  it  be,  upon  similar  etymolo- 
gical grounds,  to  prove  that  the  leading  Teutonic  nations  were  named 
from  their  weapons  !  Saxons  from  sea.v,  the  long  knife  ;  Angles  from 
anffol,  a  hook  ;  Franks  from/ranco,  a  javelin;  Langobards  and  Hea'So- 
bards  from  barda,  the  axe  or  halberd;  nay  even  the  general  name 
itself,  Germans,  from  gdrman  (Old  Germ,  kdrman)  the  javelin-  or  goad- 
man.  Yet  who  would  assert  these  to  be  satisfactory  derivations  ?  Zahn, 
whose  services  to  Old  German  literatm'e  cannot  be  overrated,  speaks 
wisely  when  he  calls  the  similarity  of  proper  names,  a  rook  "on  which 
uncritical  heads  are  much  in  the  habit  of  splitting."  Vorrede  zu 
Ulphilas,  p.  3. 


42  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

The  word  Mark  has  a  legal  as  well  as  a  territo- 
rial meaning  :  it  is  not  only  a  space  of  land,  such 
as  has  been  described,  but  a  member  of  a  state 
also  ;  in  which  last  sense  it  represents  those  who 
dwell  upon  the  land,  in  relation  to  their  privileges 
and  rights,  both  as  respects  themselves  and  others. 
But  the  word,  as  applied  even  to  the  territory,  has 
a  twofold  meaning :  it  is,  properly  speaking,  em- 
ployed to  denote  not  only  the  whole  district  occu- 
pied by  one  small  community  ^ ;  but  more  especially 
those  forests  and  wastes  by  which  the  arable  is  en- 
closed, and  which  separate  the  possessions  of  one 
tribe  from  those  of  another  ^.  The  Mark  or  boun- 
dary pasture-land,  and  the  cultivated  space  which 
it  surrounds,  and  which  is  portioned  out  to  the  se- 
veral members  of  the  community,  are  inseparable ; 

'  If  a  man  te  emancipated,  his  lord  shall  still  retain  the  right  to  his 
mund  and  wergyld,  sy  ofer  mearce  'Sser  he  wille,  he  he  over  the  mark 
wherever  he  may  be,  be  he  out  of  the  district  where  he  may.  LI.  Wihtr. 
§  8.     Thorpe,  i.  38. 

^  Grimm  is  of  opinion  that  the  word  Marc  itself  originally  denoted 
forest,  and  that  the  modern  sense  is  a  secondary  one,  derived  from  the 
fact  of  forests  being  the  signs  or  marks  of  communities.  Deut.  Qranz- 
alterthiimer;  Berl.  1844.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  forests  were  so  : 
in  Old  Norse  the  two  ideas,  and  the  words  by  which  they  are  expressed, 
flow  into  one  another :  Mork  (f)  is  siha,  Mark  (n)  is  limes.  In  the 
Edda  and  Sbgur,  Myrkvi'Sr  is  the  common  name  for  a  wood :  thus, 
sem  bessi  her  kom  saman,  ri'Sa  Jjeir  a  skog  i>an  er  Myrkvi'Sr  heitir, 
hann  skilr  Hiinaland  ok  ReiSgota  land ;  they  ride  to  the  forest  which 
is  called  Myrkvi^r  (mearcwidu  in  Anglosaxon)  which  separates  Huna 
land  from  Reidgota  land.  Fornm.  Sog.  i.  493.  Though  given  here  as 
a  proper  name,  it  is  unquestionably  a  general  one.  Conf.  Edda,  Vii- 
lund.  cv.  1. 

meyjar  flugu  sunnan 
myrkvilS  igognum. 
and  so  in  many  passages.    The  darkness  of  the  forest  gives  rise  also  to 
the  adjective  murhy. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MARK.  43 

however  diiferent  the  nature  of  the  property  which 
can  be  had  in  them,  they  are  in  fact  one  whole ; 
taken  together,  they  maiie  up  the  whole  territorial 
possession  of  the  original  cognatio,  kin  or  tribe. 
The  ploughed  lands  and  meadows  are  guarded  by 
the  Mark ;  and  the  cultivator  ekes  out  a  subsistence 
which  could  hardly  be  wrung  from  the  small  plot 
he  calls  his  own,  by  the  flesh  and  other  produce  of 
beasts,  which  his  sons,  his  dependents  or  his  serfs 
'  mast  for  him  in  the  outlying  forests. 

Let  us  first  take  into  consideration  the  Mark  in 
its  restricted  and  proper  sense  of  a  boundary.  Its 
most  general  characteristic  is,  that  it  should  not  be 
distributed  in  arable,  but  remain  in  heath,  forest, 
fen  and  pasture.  In  it  the  Markmen — called  in 
Germany  Markgenossen,  and  perhaps  by  the  Anglo- 
saxons  Mearcgeneatas — had  commonable  rights ; 
but  there  could  be  no  private  estate  in  it,  no  hid  or 
blot,  no  KXrjpoG  or  haeredium.  Even  if  under  pecu- 
liar circumstances,  any  markman  obtained  a  right 
to  essart  or  clear  a  portion  of  the  forest,  the  por- 
tion so  subjected  to  the  immediate  law  of  property 
ceased  to  be  mark.  It  was  undoubtedly  under 
the  protection  of  the  gods ;  and  it  is  probable  that 
within  its  woods  were  those  sacred  shades  espe- 
cially consecrated  to  the  habitation  and  service  of 
the  deity  ^. 

'  Tacitus  says  of  the  Semnones  :  "  Stato  tempore  in  silvam,  auguriis 
patrum  et  prisca  formidine  sacram,  omnes  eiusdem  sanguinis  populi 
iegationibus  ooeunt,  caesoque  publice  homine  celetrant  "barbari  ritus 
horrenda  primordia.  Est  et  alia  luco  reverentia.  Nemo  nisi  vinculo 
ligatus  ingreditur,  ut  minor,  et  potestatem  numinis  prae  se  ferena.  Si 
forte  prolapsus  est,  attolli  et  iusurgere  baud  licitum,  per  humum  evol- 


44  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

If  the  nature  of  an  early  Teutonic  settlement, 
which  has  nothing  in  common  with  a  city,  be  duly 
considered,  there  will  appear  an  obvious  necessity 
for  the  existence  of  a  mark,  and  for  its  being  main- 
tained inviolate.  Every  community,  not  sheltered 
by  walls,  .or  the  still  firmer  defences  of  public  law, 
must  have  one,  to  separate  it  from  neighbours  and 
protect  it  from  rivals  :  it  is  like  the  outer  pulp  that 
surrounds  and  defends  the  kernel.  No  matter  how 
small  or  how  large  the  community, — it  may  be 
only  a  village,  even  a  single  household,  or  a  whole 
state, — it  will  still  have  a  Mark,  a  space  or  boun- 
dary by  which  its  own  rights  of  jurisdiction  are 
limited,  and  the  encroachments  of  others  are  kept 
off^.      The  more  extensive  the  community  which 


vuntur :  eoqiie  omnis  superstitio  respicit,  tanq^uam  inde  initia  gentis, 
ibi  regnator  omnium  deus,  cetera  suMecta  atque  parentia."  GeiTn.  39. 
Again :  "  Apud  Naharvalos  antiquae  religionis  lucus  ostenditur." 
Ibid.  43.  Without  asserting  the  existence  of  the  Mark  among  the 
Greeks  with  all  the  peculiar  German  characteristics,  we  may  borrow 
from  them  an  illustration  and  definition  of  its  nature.  Between  the 
territories  of  the  Athenians  and  Megareans  lay  a  tract  of  land,  the  cul- 
tivation of  which  by  the  latter  formed  the  pretext  or  justification  of  the 
excommunication  launched  against  them  by  "Olympian"  Pericles, 
which  ultimately  led  to  the  Peloponesian  war,  and  the  downfal  of 
Athens.  The  Athenians,  Thucydides  tells  us,  refused  to  rescind  their 
intemperate  decree,  iviKaXovvres  enepyaa-iav  Meyapeva-i  ttjs  yrjs  t^s 
ifpar  Koi  T^s  dopioTov  (Lib.  i.  139),  where  the  Scholiast  explains  aopi- 
a-Tov  by  ou  a-jretpofievris.  Sacred  and  not  divided  into  plots  fw  cultivation 
hy  the  •plough,  is  the  exact  definition  of  a  Teutonic  Mark.  Compare 
xoipios  vdirr)  (silva  porcina)  between  Laconia  and  Messenia.  Paus.  iv.  1. 
In  the  legend  of  St.  Gu'Slac,  the  saint  is  said  to  occupy  the  desert  wilder- 
ness, mearclond,  the  mark  (Codex  Exoniensis,  p.  112, 1. 16),  and  this  is 
accurately  defined  as  idel  -j  semen,  ^^elrihte  feor,  empty  and  uninha- 
lited,  in  which  there  were  no  rights  of  property.  Ibid.  p.  115.  1.  9. 

'  Caesar  appears  to  have  understood  this.     He  says  :  "Civitatibus 
maxima  laus  est,  quam  latissimas  circum  se  vastatis  finihus  solitudines 


cii.  n.]  THE  MARK.  45 

is  interested  in  the  Mark,  the  more  solemn  and 
sacred  the  formalities  by  which  it  is  consecrated 
and  defended ;  but  even  the  boundary  of  the  pri- 
vate man's  estate  is  under  the  protection  of  the 
gods  and  of  the  law.  "  Accursed,"  in  all  ages 
and  all  legislations,  "is  he  that  remoyeth  his 
neighbour's  landmark."  Even  the  owner  of  a  pri- 
vate estate  is  not  allowed  to  build  or  cultivate  to 
the  extremity  of  his  own  possession,  but  must  leave 
a  space  for  eaves  ^.  Nor  is  the  general  rule  abro- 
gated by  changes  in  the  original  compass  of  the 
communities ;  as  smaller  districts  coalesce  and  be- 
come, as  it  were,  compressed  into  one  body,  the 
smaller  and  original  Marks  may  become  obliterated 
and  converted  merely  into  commons,  but  the  public 
mark  will  have  been  increased  upon  the  new  and 
extended  frontier.  Villages  tenanted  by  Heardingas 
or  Modingas  may  cease  to  be  separated,  but  the 
larger  divisions  which  have  grown  up  by  their  union, 
Meanwaras,  Msegsetan  or  Hwiccas  ^  will  still  have 
a  boundary  of  their  own ;  these  again  may  be  lost 
in  the  extending  circuit  of  Wessex  or  Mercia ;  till 

habere.  Hoc  proprium  virtutis  existimant,  expulsos  agxis  fluitumos 
cedere,  neque  quemquam  prope  audere  consistere  :  simul  hoc  se  fore 
tutiores  arbitrantur,  repentinae  incursionis  timore  sublato."  This  is 
true,  but  in  the  case  of  most  settlements  the  necessity  of  maintaining 
extensive  pasture-grounds  must  have  made  itself  felt  at  a  very  early 
period. 

'  Efese.  Goth.  Ubiswa.  .  The  name  for  this  custom  was  Yfesdrype, 
Eavesdrip.  In  a  charter  of  the  year  868  it  is  said  :  "  And  by  the  cus- 
tom (folcea  folcriht)  two  feet  space  only  need  be  left  for  eavesdrip  on 
this  land."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  296.  In  Greece  the  distances  were  solemnly 
regulated  by  law :  see  Plut.  Solon,  cap.  23. 

''  The  people  in  the  hundreds  of  East  and  West  Meon,  Hampshire; 
in  Herefordshire ;  and  in  Worcester  and  Gloucester. 


46  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

a  yet  greater  obliteration  of  the  Marks  having  been 
produced  through  increasing  population,  internal 
conquest,  or  the  ravages  of  foreign  invaders,  the 
great  kingdom  of  England  at  length  arises,  having 
wood  and  desolate  moorland  and  mountain  as  its 
mark  against  Scots,  Cumbrians  and  Britons,  and 
the  eternal  sea  itself  as  a  bulwark  against  Frankish 
and  Frisian  pirates  ^. 

But  although  the  Mark  is  waste,  it  is  yet  the 
property  of  the  community  :  it  belongs  to  the  free- 
men as  a  whole,  not  as  a  partible  possession:  it 
may  as  little  be  profaned  by  the  stranger,  as  the 
arable  land  itself  which  it  defends^.  It  is  under  the 
safeguard  of  the  public  law,  long  after  it  has  ceased 

'  To  a  very  lute  period,  the  most  powerful  of  our  nobles  were  the 
Lords  Marchers  .or  Lords  of  the  Marches  of  Wales  and  Scotland. 
Harald  was  lord  of  the  Marches  against  the  Welsh.  And  so  the  here- 
ditary Markgraves  or  Counts  of  the  Mark,  Marchioues,  have  become 
kings  in  Germany  and  Italy.  Our  only  Markgraviats  by  land  could 
be  against  the  Welsh  on  the  west,  the  Picts  and  Scots  on  the  north. 
There  were  undoubtedly  others  among  the  Saxons  while  their  king- 
doms remained  unsettled  :  but  not  when  once  the  whole  realm  became 
united  under  ^tSelstan.  The  consolidation  of  the  English  power  has 
put  down  all  but  transmarine  invaders ;  hence  the  sea  is  become  our 
Mark,  and  the  commanders  of  our  ships,  the  Margraves.  But,  as 
Blackstone  rather  beautifully  says,  "  water  is  a  wandering  and  uncer- 
tain thing,"  and  our  Margraves  therefore  establish  no  territorial  autho- 
rity. The  reader  is  referred  to  Donniges,  Deutsches  Staatsrecht,  p.  297, 
seq.,  for  a  very  good  account  of  the  Marches  of  the  German  Empire. 

^  If  a  stranger  come  through  the  wood,  he  shall  blow  his  horn  and 
shout :  this  wiU  be  evidence  that  his  intentions  are  just  and  peaceful. 
But  if  he  attempt  to  slink  through  in  secret,  he  may  be  slain,  and  shall 
lie  unavenged.  Leg.  Ini.  §  20,  21.  Thorpe,  i.  114, 116.  If  the  death- 
blow under  such  circumstances  be  publicly  avouched,  his  kindred  or  lord 
shall  not  even  be  allowed  to  prove  that  he  was  not  a  thief:  otherwise, 
if  the  manslaughter  be  concealed.  This  raises  a  presumption  in  law 
against  the  slayer,  and  the  dead  man's  kindred  shall  be  admitted  to 
their  oath  th  at  he  was  guiltless. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MARK.  47 

to  be  under  the  immediate  protection  of  the  gods : 
it  is  unsafe,  full  of  danger ;  death  lurks  in  its  shades 
and  awaits  the  incautious  or  hostile  visitant : 

eal  wees  'Seet  mearclond  all  the  markland  was 

moi"Sre  bewunden,  with  death  surrounded, 

feondes  facne :  the  snares  of  the  foe ' : 

punishments  of  the  most  frightful  character  are  de- 
nounced against  him  who  violates  it  ^  ;  and  though, 
in  historical  times,  these  can  only  be  looked  upon 
as  comminatory  and  symbolical,  it  is  very  possible 
that  they  may  be  the  records  of  savage  sacrifices 
believed  due,  and  even  offered,  to  the  gods  of  the 
violated  sanctuary.  I  can  well  believe  that  we  too 
had  once  our  Diana  Taurica.  The  Marks  are  called 
accursed ;  that  is  accursed  to  man,  accursed  to  him 
that  does  not  respect  their  sanctity :  but  they  are 
sacred,  for  on  their  maintenance  depend  the  safety 
of  the  community,  and  the  service  of  the  deities 
whom  that  community  honours  ^.  And  even  when 
the  gods  have  abdicated  their  ancient  power,  even 
to  the  very  last,  the  terrors  of  superstition  come  in 
aid  of  the  enactments  of  law :   the  deep  forests  and 

'  Cod.  Vercel.  And.  1.  38. 

^  Grimm  has  given  examples  of  these,  but  they  are  too  horrible  for 
quotation.  They  may  be  read  in  his  Deutsche  Eechtsalterthumer, 
pp.  518,  519,  5i30. 

'  1  am  inclined  to  think  that  the  cwealmstow  or  place  of  execution 
was  properly  in  the  mark ;  as  it  is  indeed  probable  that  all  capital 
punishments  among  the  Germans  were  originally  in  the  nature  of  sacri- 
fices to  the  gods.  When  Juliana  is  about  to  be  put  to  death,  she  is 
taken  to  the  border,  londmearce  neah,  nigh  to  the  landmark.  Cod. 
Exon.  p.  2iS0.  Prometheus  hung  in  the  a^poros  iprjfiia :  though  per- 
haps there  is  another  and  deeper  feeling  here, — that  the  friend  of  man 
should  suffer  in  the  desert 

"  where  no  man  comes, 
Nor  hath  come,  since  the  making  of  the  world ! " 


48  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

marshes  are  the  abodes  of  monsters  and  dragons  ; 
wood-spirits  bewilder  and  decoy  the  wanderer  to 
destruction :  the  Nicors  house  by  the  side  of  lakes 
and  marshes  ^ :  Grendel,  the  man-eater,  is  a  "mighty 
stepper  over  the  mark  ^  " :  the  chosen  home  of  the 
firedrake  is  a  fen  ^. 

The  natural  tendency,  however,  of  this  state  of 
isolation  is  to  give  way  ;  population  is  an  ever-ac- 
tive element  of  social  well-being  :  and  when  once 
the  surface  of  a  country  has  become  thickly  stud- 
ded with  communities  settled  between  the  Marks, 
and  daily  finding  the  several  clearings  grow  less 
and  less  sufficient  for  their  support  *,  the  next  step 
is  the  destruction  of  the  Marks  themselves,  and  the 
union  of  the  settlers  in  larger  bodies,  and  under 
altered  circumstances.  Take  two  villages,  placed 
on  such  clearings  in  the  bosom  of  the  forest,  each 
having  an  ill-defined  boundary  in  the  wood  that 
separates  them,  each  extending  its  circuit  wood- 
ward as  population  increases  and  presses  upon  the 
land,  and  each  attempting  to  drive  its  Mark  further 
into  the  waste,  as  the  arable  gradually  encroaches 
upon  this.  On  the  first  meeting  of  the  herdsmen, 
one  of  three  courses  appears  unavoidable :  the  com- 
munities must  enter  into  a  federal  union ;  one  must 

1  Bedw.  1.  2822. 

^  Bedw.  1.  2695.  miole  mearcstapan. 

^  "  Like  to  a  lonely  dragon,  that  his  fen 

Makes  fear'd  and  talk'd  of  more  than  seen." 

Shaksp.  Ooriol.  act  iv.  sc.  1. 
*  "Facilitatempartiendi  camporum  spatiapraestaut."  Tac.  Germ.  26. 
But  as  the  space  diminishes,  so  also  diminishes  the  stability  of  a  form 
of  society  founded  upon  its  existence. 


CH.  n.]  THE  MARK.  49 

attack  and  subjugate  the  other ;  or  the  two  must 
coalesce  into  one  on  friendly  and  equal  terms  i. 
The  last-named  result  is  not  improbable,  if  the  gods 
of  the  one  tribe  are  common  to  the  other:  then 
perhaps  the  temples  only  may  shift  their  places  a 
little.  But  in  any  case  the  intervening  forest  will 
cease  to  be  Mark,  because  it  will  now  lie  in  the 
centre,  and  not  on  the  borders  of  the  new  commu- 
nity. It  will  be  converted  into  common  pasture, 
to  be  enjoyed  by  all  on  fixed  conditions  ;  or  it  may 
even  be  gradually  rooted  out,  ploughed,  planted 
and  rendered  subject  to  the  ordinary  accidents  of 
arable  land  :  it  will  become  folcland,  public  land, 
applicable  to  the  general  uses  of  the  enlarged  state, 
nay  even  divisible  into  private  estates,  upon  the 
established  principles  of  public  law.  And  this  pro- 
cess will  be  repeated  and  continue  until  the  family 
becomes  a  tribe,  and  the  tribe  a  kingdom ;  when 
the  intervening  boundary  lands,  cleared,  drained 
and  divided,  will  have  been  clothed  with  golden 
harvests,  or  portioned  out  in  meadows  and  com- 
mon pastures,  appurtenant  to  villages ;  and  the 
only  marks  remaining  will  be  the  barren  mountain 
and  moor  of  the  frontiers,  the  deep  unforded  rivers, 
and  the  great  ocean  that  washes  the  shores  of  the 
continent. 

-  Histoiy  supplies  numerous  illustrations  of  this  process.  Rome  grew 
out  of  the  union  of  the  Rhamnes  and  Luceres  with  the  Sabines  :  and 
generally  speaking  in  Greece,  the  origin  of  the  ttoKls  lies  in  what  may 
be  called  the  compression  of  the  Ka/iai.  The  dyopa  is  on  the  space  of 
neutral  groimd  where  all  may  meet  on  equal  terms,  as  the  Russians 
and  Chinese  trade  at  "Kiachta ;  but  then  when  the  ttoXis  has  grown  up, 
the  dyopa  is  in  its  centre,  not  in  its  suburbs. 

VOL.  I.  E 


50  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Christianity,  which    destroys  or  diminishes  the 
holiness  of  the  forests,  necessarily  confines  the  gua- 
rantee of  the  Mark  to  the  public  law  of  the  state, 
lience  when  these  districts  become  included  within 
the  limits   of  Christian  communities,   there  is  no 
difficulty  in  the  process  which  has  been  described : 
the  state  deals  with  them  as  with  any  other  part  of 
its  territory,  by  its  own  sovereign  power,  according 
to  the  prevalent  ideas  of  agricultural  or  political 
ceconomy ;  and  the  once  inviolate  land  may  at  once 
be  converted  to  public  uses,  widely  different  from 
its  original  destination,  if  the  public  advantage  re- 
quire it.     No  longer  necessary  as  a  boundary,  from 
the  moment  when  the  smaller  community  has  be- 
come swallowed  up  and  confounded  in  the  larger, 
it  may  remain  in  commons,  be  taken  possession  of 
by  the  state  as  folcland,  or  become  the  source  of 
even  private  estates,  and  to   all  these  purposes  we 
find  it   gradually  applied.     In  process  of  time  it 
seems  even  to  have  become  partible  and  appurte- 
nant to  private  estates  in  a  certain  proportion  to 
the  arable  ^ :  towards  the  close  of  the  tenth  century 
.  I  find  the  grant  of  a  mill  and  millstead,  "and  there- 
to as  much  of  the  markland  as  belongeth  to  three 
hydes  "  2. 

The  general  advantage  which  requires  the  maia- 
tenance  of  the  Mark  as  public  property,  does  not 
however  preclude  the  possibility  of  using   it  for 

'  Most  likely  as  commons  are  distributed  now,  under  enclosure-bills; 
allotments  being  made  in  fee,  as  compensation  for  commonable  rights. 

^  And  se  mylenham  -j  se  my  In  ^sertd,  -j  «8es  mearclandes  swa  mycel 
swa  to  t)rim  hidon  gebyia^.     an.  082.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  683. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MAKK.  61 

public  purposes,  as  long  as  the  great  condition  of 
indivisibility  is  observed.  Although  it  may  not  be 
cleared  and  ploughed,  it  may  be  depastured,  and 
all  the  herds  of  the  Markmen  may  be  fed  and 
masted  upon  its  wilds  and  v^dthin  its  shades.  While 
it  still  comprises  only  a  belt  of  forest,  lying  between 
small  settlements,  those  who  live  contiguous  to  it, 
are  most  exposed  to  the  sudden  incursions  of  an 
enemy,  and  perhaps  specially  entrusted  with  the 
measures  for  public  defence,  may  have  peculiar 
privileges,  extending  in  certain  cases  even  to  the 
right  of  clearing  or  essarting  portions  of  it.  In 
the  case  of  the  wide  tracts  which  separate  king- 
doms, we  know  that  a  comprehensive  military  or- 
ganization prevailed,  with  castles,  garrisons,  and 
governors  or  Margraves,  as  in  Austria,  Branden- 
burg and  Baden,  Spoleto  and  Ancona,  Northum- 
berland and  the  Marches  of  Wales.  But  where 
clearings  have  been  made  in  the  forest,  the  holders 
are  bound  to  see  that  they  are  maintained,  and  that 
the  fresh  arable  land  be  not  encroached  upon ;  if 
forest-trees  spring  there  by  neglect  of  the  occu- 
pant, the  essart  again  becomes  forest,  and,  as  such, 
subject  to  all  the  common  rights  of  the  Markmen, 
whether  in  pasture,  chase  or  estovers  ^. 

The  sanctity  of  the  Mark  is  the  condition  and 
guarantee  of  its  indivisibility,  without  which  it  can- 
not long  be  proof  against  the  avarice  or  ambition 

'  Estmeria.  In  this  case,  small  wood  necessary  for  houseliold  pur- 
poses, as  Housebote,  Hedgeljote  and  Ploughbote,  tlie  materials  for  re- 
pairing house,  hedge  and  plough.  But  timber  trees  are  not  included. 
See  Stat.  West.  2.  cap.  25;  and  20  Oar.  II.  c.  3. 

E  2 


52  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  individuals :  and  its  indivisibility  is,  in  turn,  the 
condition  of  the  service  which  it  is  to  render  as  a 
bulwark,  and  of  its  utility  as  a  pasture.  I  therefore 
hold  it  certain  that  some  solemn  religious  ceremo- 
nies at  first  accompanied  and  consecrated  its  limi- 
tation^.  What  these  may  have  consisted  in,  among 
the  heathen  Anglosaxons,  we  cannot  now  discover, 
but  many  circumstances  render  it  probable  that 
Woden,  who  in  this  function  also  resembles  'Epfxrjc, 
was  the  tutelary  god^ :  though  not  absolutely  to  the 
exclusion  of  other  deities,  Tiw  and  Frea  appearing 
to  have  some  claim  to  a  similar  distinction^.  But 
however  its  limit  was  originally  drawn  or  driven,  it 
was,  as  its  name  denotes,  distinguished  by  marks 
or  signs.  Trees  of  peculiar  size  and  beauty,  and 
carved  with  the  figures  of  birds  and  beasts,  perhaps 
even  with  Runic  characters,  served  the  purpose  of 
limitation  and  definition  ^  :  striking  natural  features, 


^  "  Silvam  auguriis  patrum  et  prisca  formidine  sacram."  Tac.  Germ. 
39.     See  Moser,  Osnabriickische  Geschiohte,  i.  57,  seq. 

'  'Epyuijr,  in  this  one  sense  Mercurhis,  is  identical  with  Woden.  Both 
invented  letters ;  both  are  the  wandering;  god ;  both  are  Odysseus. 
The  name  of  Woden  is  preserved  in  many  boundary  places,  or  chains 
of  hills,  in  every  part  of  England.  See  chap.  xii.  of  this  Book.  The 
Wonac  (Cod.  Dipl.  No.  495),  the  Wdnstoc  (ibid.  Nos.  287,  657),  1 
have  no  hesitation  in  translating  by  Woden's  oak,  Woden's  post. 
Scyldes  tredw  (ibid.  No.  436)  may  also  refer  to  Woden  in  the  form  of 
Scyld,  as  Hnices  J>orn  (ibid.  No.  268)  may  record  the  same  god  in  his 
form  of  Hnicor,  or  Hnic. 

'  Teowes  Jjorn,  Tiw's  thorn.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  174.  Tiwes  m^re,  Tiw's 
lake.  Ibid.  No.  263.  Frigedasges  tredw  (ibid.  No.  1221),  the  tree  of 
Frigedaeg,  a  name  I  hold  equivalent  to  Frea  or  Fricge. 

*  The  boundaries  of  the  Anglosaxon  charters  supply  a  profusion  of 
evidence  on  this  subject.  The  trees  most  frequently  named  are  the 
oak,  ash,  beech,  thorn,  elder,  lime  and  birch.  The  heathen  burial- 
place  or  mound  is  singularly  frequent.     Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  247,  83-5,  476. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MARK.  53 

a  hill,  a  brook,  a  morass,  a  rock,  or  the  artificial 
mound  of  an  ancient  warrior,  warned  the  intruder 
to  abstain  from  dangerous  ground,  or  taught  the 
herdsman  how  far  he  might  advance  with  impu- 
nity. In  water  or  in  marshy  land,  poles  were  set 
up,  which  it  was  as  impious  to  remove,  as  it  would 
have  been  to  cut  or  burn  down  a  mark-tree  in  the 
forest. 

In  the  second  and  more  important  sense  of  the 
word,  the  Mark  is  a  community  of  families  or 
households,  settled  on  such  plots  of  land  and  forest 
as  have  been  described.  This  is  the  original  basis 
upon  which  all  Teutonic  society  rests,  and  must  be 
assumed  to  have  been  at  first  amply  competent  to 

The  charter  No.  126  has  these  words  :  "Deinde  Tero  ad  alios  montiou- 
los,  postea  Tero  ad  viam  quae  dicitur  Fif  ac,  recto  itinere  ad  easdem  fif 
ac,  proinde  aiitem  ad  Jjreom  gema^ran."  Here  the  boundaries  of 
three  several  districts  lay  close  to  a  place  called  Five  Oaks.  That  the 
trees  were  sometimes  marked  is  clear  from  the  entries  in  the  bounda- 
ries :  thus,  in  the  year  931,  to  «asre  gemearcodan  sec  set  Alerbuman, 
the  marked  oak.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1102.  ^a  gemearcodan  aafse,  the 
marked  eaves  or  edge  of  the  wood.  Ibid.  Also,  on  'Sa  gemearcodan 
lindan,  Ibid.  No.  1317.  Cyrstel-msel  ac,  or  Christ  cross  oak.  Ibid. 
No.  118.  At  Addlestone,  near  Chertsey,  is  an  ancient  and  most  vene- 
rable oak,  called  the  Crouch  (crux,  crois),  that  is  Cross  oak,  which 
tradition  declares  to  have  been  a  boundary  of  Windsor  forest.  The 
same  thing  is  found  in  Circassia.  See  Bell,  ii.  58.  The  mearcbeam, 
without  further  definition,  is  common  :  so  the  mearctreow.  Cod.  Dipl. 
No.  436.  The  mearcbroc.  Ibid.  No.  1102.  Artificial  or  natural  stone 
posts  are  implied  by  the  constantly  recurring  haran  stanas,  graegan 
stanas,  hoary  or  grey  stones.  Among  Christians,  crosses  and  obelisks 
have  replaced  these  old  heathen  symbols,  without  altering  the  nature 
of  the  sanction,  and  the  weichUld,  or  mark  that  defines  the  limits  of  a 
jurisdiction,  can,  in  my  opinion,  mean  only  the  sacred  sign.  On  this 
point  see  Haltaus.  Gloss,  in  voce,  whose  derivation  from  wic,  oppidmn, 
is  unsatisfactory.  See  too  Eichhorn,  Beutsche  Staats-  und  Rechtsge- 
Bchichte,  ii.  76.  §  224  a.  note  c  :  with  whose  decision  Grimm  and  I 
coincide. 


54  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

all  the  demands  of  society  in  a  simple  and  early 
stage  of  development :  for  example,  to  have  been 
a  union  for  the  purpose  of  administering  justice, 
or  supplying  a  mutual  guarantee  of  peace,  security 
and  freedom  for  the  inhabitants  of  the  district.  In 
this  organization,  the  use  of  the  land,  the  woods 
and  the  waters  was  made  dependent  upon  the  ge- 
neral will  of  the  settlers,  and  could  only  be  enjoyed 
under  general  regulations  made  by  all  for  the  be- 
nefit of  all.  The  Mark  was  a  voluntary  association 
of  free  men,  who  laid  down  for  themselves,  and . 
strictly  maintained,  a  system  of  cultivation  by 
which  the  produce  of  the  land  on  which  they  set- 
tled might  be  fairly  and  equally  secured  for  their 
service  and  support;  and  from  participation  in 
which  they  jealously  excluded  all  who  were  not 
born,  or  adopted,  into  the  association.  Circum- 
stances dependent  upon  the  peculiar  local  confor- 
mation of  the  district,  or  even  on  the  relations  of 
the  original  parties  to  the  contract,  may  have  caused 
a  great  variety  in  the  customs  of  different  Marks; 
and  these  appear  occasionally  anomalous,  when  we 
meet  with  them  still  subsisting  in  a  different  order 
of  social  existence  ^ ;  but  with  the  custom  of  one 
Mark,  another  had  nothing  to  do,  and  the  Mark- 
men,  within  their  own  limit,  were  independent, 
suflficient  to  their  own  support  and  defence,  and 
seised  of  full  power  and  authority  to  regulate  their 
own  affairs,  as  seemed  most  conducive  to  their  own 

'  For  example  in  Manors,  -where  tlae  ten-itorial  jurisdiction  of  a  lord 
has  usurped  the  place  of  the  old  Markmoot,  but  not  availed  entirely  to 
destroy  the  old  Mark -rights  in  the  various  commons. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MARK.  55 

advantage.  The  Court  of  the  Markmen,  as  it  may 
be  justly  called,  must  have  had.  supreme  jurisdic- 
tion, at  first,  over  all  the  causes  which  could  in  any 
way  affect  the  interests  of  the  whole  body  or  the 
individuals  composing  it :  and  suit  and  service  to 
such  court  was  not  less  the  duty,  than  the  high 
privilege,  of  the  free  settlers.  On  the  continent  of 
.  Germany  the  divisions  of  the  Marks  and  the  extent 
of  their  jurisdiction  can  be  ascertained  with  consi- 
derable precision;  from  these  it  maybe  inferred 
that  in  very  many  cases  the  later  courts  of  the 
great  landowners  had  heen  in  fact  at  first  Mark- 
courts,  in  which,  even  long  after  the  downfall  of 
the  primaeval  freedom,  the  Lord  himself  had  been 
only  the  first  Markman,  the  patron  or  defender  of 
the  simple  freemen,  either  by  inheritance  or  their 
election  ^.  In  this  country,  the  want  of  materials 
precludes  the  attainment  of  similar  certainty,  but 
there  can  be  no  reason  to  doubt  that  the  same  pro- 
cess took  place,  and  that  originally  Markcourts 
existed  among  ourselves  with  the  same  objects  and 
powers.  In  a  charter  of  the  year  971,  Cod.  Dipl. 
No.  568,  we  find  the  word  mearcmot,  which  can 
there  mean  only  the  place  where  such  a  court,  mot 

'  Numerous  instances  may  be  found  in  Grimm's  valuable  work,  Die 
Deutschen  "Weisthiimer,  3  vols.  8vo.  Tbese  are  tbe  presentments  or 
verdicts  of  sucb  courts,  from  a  very  early  period,  and  in  all  parts  of 
Germany.  It  is  deeply  to  be  lamented  that  tbe  very  early  customs 
found  in  tbe  copies  of  Coiu't  Rolls  in  England  bave  not  been  collected 
and  published.  Such  a  step  could  not  possibly  afl'ect  tbe  interests  of 
Lords  of  iMaHors,  or  their  Stewards  ;  but  tbe  collection  would  furnish 
invaluable  materials  for  law  and  history.  We  shall  have  to  refer  here- 
after to-the  Advocatus  or  Vog-t,  tbe  elected  or  hereditary  patron  of 
these  and  similar  aggregations. 


56  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

or  meeting  was  held :  while  the  mearcheorh,  which 
is  not  at  all  of  rare  occurrence,  appears  to  denote 
the  hill  or  mound  which  was  the  site  of  the  court, 
and  the  place  where  the  free  settlers  met  at  stated 
periods  to  dp  right  between  man  and  man  ^. 

It  is  not  at  all  necessary  that  these  communities 
should  have  been  very  small ;  on  the  contrary,  some 
of  the  Marks  were  probably  of  considerable  extent, 
and  capable  of  bringing  a  respectable  force  into 
the  field  upon  emergency :  others,  no  doubt,  were 
less  populous,  and  extensive  :  but  a  hundred  heads 
of  houses,  which  is  not  at  all  an  extravagant  sup- 
position, protected  by  trackless  forests,  in  a  district 
not  well  known  to  the  invader,  constitute  a  body 
very  well  able  to  defend  its  rights  and  privileges. 

Although  the  Mark  seems  originally  to  have  been 
defined  by  the  nature  of  the  district,  the  hills, 
streams  and  forests,  still  its  individual,  peculiar 
and,  as  it  were,  private  character  depended  in  some 
degree  also  upon  long-subsisting  relations  of  the 
Markmen,  both  among  themselves,  and  with  regard 
to  others.  I  represent  them  to  myself  as  great  fa- 
mily unions,  comprising  households  of  various  de- 
grees of  wealth,  rank  and  authority :  some,  in  direct 
descent  from  the  common  ancestors,  or  from  the 
hero  of  the  particular  tribe :  others,  more  distantly 
connected,  through  the  natural  result  of  increasing 
population,  which  multiplies  indeed  the  members  of 


'  Mearcbeorh,  the  Marh-hiM,  seems  too  special  a  name  to  express 
some  hill  or  other,  which  happened  to  lie  in  the  boundary.  A  Kentish 
charter  names  the  gemotbeorh  (Cod.  Dip!  No.  364.  an.  934),  but  this  is 
indefinite,  and  might  apply  to  the  Shiremoot. 


CH.  n.]  THE  MARK.  57 

the  family,  but  removes  them  at  every  step  further 
from  the  original  stock  :  some,  admitted  into  com- 
munion by  marriage,  others  by  adoption ;  others 
even  by  emancipation ;  but  all  recognizing  a  bro- 
therhood, a  kinsmanship  or  sibsceaft  ^ ;  all  standing 
together  as  one  unit  in  respect  of  other,  similar 
communities;  all  governed  by  the  same  judges  and 
led  by  the  same  captains  ;  all  sharing  in  the  same 
religious  rites,  and  all  known  to  themselves  and 
to  their  neighbours  by  one  general  name. 

The  original  significance  of  these  names  is  now 
perhaps  matter  of  curious,  rather  than  of  useful 
enquiry.  Could  we  securely  determine  it,  we  should, 
beyond  doubt,  obtain  an  insight  into  the  antiquities 
of  the  Germanic  races,  far  transcending  the  actual 
extent  of  our  historical  knowledge  ;  this  it  is  hope- 
less now  to  expect:  ages  of  continual  struggles,  of 
violent  convulsions,  of  conquests  and  revolutions, 
lie  between  us  and  our  forefathers :  the  traces  of 
their  steps  have  been  effaced  by  the  inexorable 
march  of  a  different  civilization.  This  alone  is  cer- 
tain, that  the  distinction  must  have  lain  deeply 
rooted  in  the  national  religion,  and  supplied  abun- 
dant materials  for  the  national  epos.  Much  has. 
been  irrecoverably  lost,  yet  in  what  remains  we 
recognize  fragments  which  bear  the  impress  of  for- 
mer wealth  and  grandeur.  Beowulf,  the  Traveller's 
Song,  and  the  multifarious  poems  and  traditions 

'  Refer  to  Caesar'a  expression  cognatio,  in  a  note  to  p.  39.  It  is 
remarkable  that  early  MS.  glossaries  render  the  word  fratrueles  by 
gelondan,  whicli  can  only  be  translated,  "  those  settled  upon  the  same 
land ;"  thus  identifying  the  local  with  the  family  relations. 


5S  THE  SAXONS  IX  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  Scandinavia,  not  less  than  the  scattered  names 
which  meet  us  here  and  there  in  early  German 
history,  offer  hints  which  can  only  serve  to  excite 
regret  for  the  mass  which  has  perished.  The  king- 
doms and  empires  which  have  exercised  the  pro- 
foundest  influence  upon  the  course  of  modern  civi- 
lization, have  sprung  out  of  obscure  communities 
whose  very  names  are  only  known  to  us  through 
the  traditions  of  the  poet,  or  the  local  denomina- 
tions which  record  the  sites  of  their  early  settle- 
ments. 

Many  hypotheses  may  be  formed  to  account  for 
these  ancient  aggregations,  especially  on  the  conti- 
nent of  Europe.  Perhaps  not  the  least  plausible 
is  that  of  a  single  family,  itself  claiming  descent, 
through  some  hero,  from  the  gods,  and  gathering 
other  scattered  families  around  itself ;  thus  retain- 
ing the  administration  of  the  family  rites  of  religion, 
and  giving  its  own  name  to  all  the  rest  of  the 
community.  Once  established,  such  distinctive  ap- 
pellations must  wander  with  the  migrations  of  the 
communities  themselves,  or  such  portions  of  them 
as  want  of  land  and  means,  and  excess  of  popula- 
.tion  at  home,  compelled  to  seek  new  settlements. 
In  the  midst  of  restless  movements,  so  general 
and  extensive  as  those  of  our  progenitors,  it  can- 
not surprise  us,  when  we  find  the  gentile  names 
of  Germany,  Norway,  Sweden  and  Denmark,  re- 
produced upon  our  own  shores.  Even  where  a 
few  adventurers — one  only — bearing  a  celebrated 
name,  took  possession  of  a  new  home,  comrades 
would  readily  be  found,  glad  to  constitute  themselves 


CH.ii.J  THE  MARK.  59 

around  him  under  an  appellation  long  recognized  as 
heroic :  or  a  leader,  distinguished  for  his  skill,  his 
valour  and  success,  his  power  or  superior  wealth, 
may  have  found  little  difficulty  in  imposing  the 
name  of  his  own  race  upon  all  who  shared  in  his 
adventures.  Thus  Harlings  and  Wselsings,  names 
most  intimately  connected  with  the  great  epos  of 
the  Germanic  and  Scandinavian  races,  are  repro- 
duced in  several  localities  in  England  :  Billing,  the 
noble  progenitor  of  the  royal  race  of  Saxony,  has 
more  than  one  enduring  record:  and  similarly,  I 
believe  all  the  local  denominations  of  the  early 
settlements  to  have  arisen  and  been  perpetuated  ^. 
So  much  light  appears  derivable  from  a  proper  in- 
vestigation of  these  names,  that  I  have  collected 
them  in  an  Appendix  (A.)  at  the  end  of  this  vo- 
lume, to  the  contents  of  which  the  reader's  atten- 
tion is  invited  2. 

'  The  Harlings,  in  Anglosaxon  Herelingas  (Trav.  Song,  1.  224)  ; 
Harlunge,  (W.  Grimm,  Deut.  Heldensage,  p.  280,  etc.,)  are  found  at 
Harling  in  Norfolk  and  Kent,  and  at  Harlington  (Herelingatiin)  in 
Bedfordshire  and  Middlesex.  The  Wselsings,  in  Old  Norse  Volsungar, 
the  family  of  Sigurdr  or  Siegfried,  reappear  at  Walsingham  in  NorfoUs:, 
Wolsingham  in  Northumherland,  and  Woolsingham  in  Durham.  The 
BiDings,  at  Billinge,  Billingham,  Billinghoe,  Billinghurst,  Billingden, 
Billington,  and  many  other  places.     See  Appendix  A. 

^  These  local  denominations  are  for  the  most  part  irregiilar  compo- 
sitions, of  which  the  former  portion  is  a  patronymic  in  -ing  or  -ling, 
declined  in  the  genitive  plural.  The  second  portion  is  a  mere  defini- 
tion of  the  locality,  as  -geat,  -hyrst,  -ham,  -wic,  -tun,  -stede,  and  the 
like.  In  a  few  cases  the  patronymic  stands  alone  in  the  nominative 
plural,  as  Totingas,  Tooting,  Surrey ;  Wdcingas,  Woking,  Surrey ; 
Meallingas,  Mailing,  Kent;'We^eringas,  Wittering,  Sussex.  Inastill 
smaller  numl)er,  the  name  of  the  eponymus  replaces  that  of  his  descend- 
ants, as  Finnes  burh,  Finsbury ;  Waelses  ham,  Walsham,  in  Norfolk  ; 
in  which  last  name,  as  well  as  in  Wselses  eafora  (Beowulf,  1.  1787),  we 


60  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

In  looking  over  this  list  we  are  immediately 
struck  with  a  remarkable  repetition  of  various 
names,  some  of  which  are  found  at  once  in  several 
counties;  and  most  striking  are  those  which,  like  the 
examples  already  alluded  to,  give  a  habitation  upon 
our  own  shores  to  the  races  celebrated  in  the  poetical 
or  historical  records  of  other  ages  and  other  lands. 
There  are  indeed  hardly  any  enquiries  of  deeper 
interest,  than  those  whose  tendency  is  to  link  the 
present  with  the  past  in  the  bonds  of  a  mythical 
tradition ;  or  which  presents  results  of.  greater  im- 
portance to  him  who  has  studied  the  modes  of 
thought  and  action  of  populations  at  an  early  stage 

have  a  record  of  the  progenitor  of  tlie  Wselsings,  wlio  is  alike  unknown 
to  the  Scandinavian  and  the  German  legends  of  that  noble  race.  In 
dealing,  however,  with  these  names,  some  amount  of  caution  is  neces- 
sary :  it  is  by  no  means  enough  that  a  word  should  end  in  -ing,  to 
convert  it  into  a  genuine  patronymic.  On  the  contrary  it  is  a  power  of 
that  termination  to  denote  the  genitive  or  possessive,  which  is  also  the 
generative,  case  :  and  in  some  local  names  we  do  find  it  so  used :  thus 
^Selwulfing  lond  (God.  Uipl.  No.  179,  a.  801)  is  exactly  equivalent  to 
^tSelwulfes  lond,  the  estate  of  a  duke  jE^elwulf,  not  of  a  family  called 
^tSelwulfings.  So  again,  ^"set  Folcwining  lond  (Cod.  Dipl.  No.  195, 
a.  811),  «fBtWynheardinglond(Cod.  Dipl.No.  195,  a.  811),  imply  the 
land  of  Folcwiue,  of  Wynheard,  not  of  mai-ks  or  families  called  Folc- 
winings  and  Wynheardings.  Woolbedington,  Wool  Lavington,  Bar- 
lavington,  are  respectively  Wulfbseding  tiin,  Wulflafingtun,  Beorlafing 
tiin,  the  tiin  or  dwelling  of  Wulflaf,  "Wulfbaed  and  Bedrlaf.  "Between 
such  words  and  genuine  patronymics  the  line  must  carefully  be  drawn, 
a  task  which  requires  both  skill  and  experience  :  the  best  security  is, 
where  we  find  the  patronymic  in  the  genitive  plural :  but  one  can  very 
generally  judge  whether  the  name  is  such  as  to  have  arisen  in  the  way 
described  above,  from  a  genitive  singular.  Changes  for  the  sake  of 
euphony  must  also  be  guarded  against,  as  sources  of  error :  thus  Abing- 
don in  Berks  would  impel  us  strongly  to  assume  a  family  of  Abingas ; 
the  Saxon  name  ^bban  diin  convinces  us  that  it  was  named  from  an 
^bba  (m.)  or  JEhhe  (f ).  Dunniugton  is  not  Duninga  tiin,  but  Dunnan, 
that  is  Dunna's  tiin. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MAEK.  61 

of  their  career.  The  intimate  relations  of  mytho- 
logy, law  and  social  institutions,  which  later  ages 
are  too  apt  scornfully  to  despise,  or  superstitiously 
to  imitate,  are  for  them,  living  springs  of  action : 
they  are  believed  in,  not  played  with,  as  in  the 
majority  of  revivals,  from  the  days  of  Anytus  and 
Melitus  to  our  own ;  and  they  form  the  broad  foun- 
dation upon  which  the  whole  social  polity  is  esta- 
blished. The  people  who  believe  in  heroes,  origi- 
nally gods  and  always  god-born,  preserve  a  remem- 
brance of  their  ancient  deities  in  the  gentile  names 
by  which  themselves  are  distinguished,  long  after 
the  rites  they  once  paid  to  their  divinities  have 
fallen  into  disuse ;  and  it  is  this  record  of  beings 
once  hallowed,  and  a  cult  once  offered,  which  they 
have  bequeathed  to  us  in  many  of  the  now  unin- 
telligible names  of  the  Marks.  Taking  these  facts 
into  account,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  affirming 
that  the  names  of  places  found  in  the  Anglosaxon 
charters,  and  yet  extant  in  England,  supply  no 
trifling  links  in  the  chain  of  evidence  by  which  we 
demonstrate  the  existence  among  ourselves  of  a 
heathendom  nearly  allied  to  that  of  Scandinavia. 

The  Waelsings,  the  Volsungar  of  the  Edda,  and 
Volsungen  of  the  German  Heldensage,  have  al- 
ready been  noticed  in  a  cursory  manner :  they  are 
the  family  whose  hero  is  Siegfried  or  Sigurdr  ^,  the 
centre  round  which  the  Nibelungen  epos  circles. 
Another  of  their  princes,  Fitela,  the  Norse  Sinfiotli, 

'  In  Beowulf  (1. 1743),  Siegfried  is  replaced  by  Sigmund,  his  father. 
Here  occurs  his  patronymical  appellation  of  Waelsing  (1.  1747),  and 
Wselses  eafora  (1. 1787). 


62  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

is  recorded  in  the  poem  of  Beowulf  ^  and  from  him 
appear  to  have  been  derived  the  Fitelingas,  whose 
name  survives  in  Fitling. 

The  Herelingas  or  Harlings  have  also  been  no- 
ticed; they  are  connected  with  the  same  great 
cycle,  and  are  mentioned  in  the  Traveller's  Song, 
1.  224.  As  Harlingen  in  Friesland  retains  a  record 
of  the  same  name,  it  is  possible  that  it  may  have 
wandered  to  the  coast  of  Norfolk  with  the  Bata- 
vian  auxiliaries,  numerus  Batavorum,  who  served 
under  their  own  chiefs  in  Britain.  The  Sweefas, 
a  border  tribe  of  the  Angles  2,  reappear  at  SwafF- 
ham.  The  Brentings  ^  are  found  again  in  Brenting- 
by.  The  Scyldings  and  Scylfings  ^,  perhaps  the  most 
celebrated  of  the  Northern  races,  give  their  names 
to  Skelding  and  Shilvington.  The  Ardings,  whose 
memorial  is  retained  in  Ardingley,  Ardington  and 
Ardingworth,  are  the  Azdingi^,  the  royal  race  of 
the  Visigoths  and  Vandals :  a  name  which  confirms 
the  tradition  of  a  settlement  of  Vandals  in  England. 
AVith  these  we  probably  should  not  confound  the 
Heardingas,who  have  left  their  name  toHardinghara 
in  Norfolk^;  The  Banings,  over  whom  Beccaruled^, 
are  recognized  in  Banningham ;  the  Hselsings  ^  in 

'  Lines  1752, 1772.  ^  Trav.  S.  1.  121. 

3  Beow.  1.  5610.  *  Ibid.  1.  60,  12-5,  etc. 

^  See  Zeuss,  p.  461  and  pp.  73,  74  ;  especially  his  note  upon  the  As- 
tingi,  p.  461,  wliere  lie  brings  forward  a  good  deal  of  evidence  in  favour 
of  the  form  Geardingas. 

'  The  Rune  poem  says  that  Ing  was  first  known  among  the  East- 
danes,  and  that  he  was  so  named  by  the  Hoardings.  This  may  refer 
to  Norfolk :  or  must  we  read  heardingas,  heUatores  f  See  Anglos. 
Runes,  -Vrchseolog.  xxviii.  327,  seq. 

'  Trav.  S.  1.  37.  «  Ibid.  1.  44. 


CH.  11.]  THE  MARK.  63 

Helsington,  and  in  the  Swedish  Helsingland  ^ :  the 
Myrgings^,  perhaps  in  Merring,  and  Merrington : 
the  Hundings  ^,  perhaps  in  Hunningham  and  Hun- 
nington:  the  Hocings ^,  in  Hucking :  the  Seringas^ 
meet  us  again  in  Sharington,  Sherington  and  She- 
ringham.  The  Dyringas^,  in  Thorington  and  Thor- 
rington,  are  likely  to  be  offshoots  of  the  great  Her- 
mundttric  race,  the  Thyringi  or  Thoringi,  now  Thu- 
ringians,  always  neighbours  of  the  Saxons.  The 
Bleccingas,  a  race  who  probably  gave  name  to 
Bleckingen  in  Sweden,  are  found  in  Bletchington, 
and  Bletchingley.  In  the  Gytingas,  known  to  us 
from  Guiting,  we  can  yet  trace  the  Alamannic  tribe 
of  the  Juthungi,  or  Jutungi.  Perhaps  in  the  Scy- 
tingas  or  Scydingas,  we  may  find  another  Alaman- 
nic tribe,  the  Scudingi  ^,  and  in  the  Dylingas,  an 
Alpine  or  Highdutch  name,  the  Tulingi^.  The 
Wseringas  are  probably  the  Norman  Vseringjar, 
whom  we  call  Varangians.  The  Wylfingas^,  another 
celebrated  race,  well  known  in  Norse  tradition,  are 
recorded  in  Beowulf  ^o  and  the  Traveller's  Song^i. 

These  are  unquestionably  no  trivial  coincidences  ;l 
they  assure  us  that  there  lies  at  the  root  of  our  land-l 
divisions  an  element  of  the  highest  antiquity;  one. 
too,  by  which  our  kinsmanship  with  the  North- 1 
german  races  is  placed  beyond  dispute.  But  their 
analogy  leads  us  to  a  wider  induction :  when  we 

'  Zeuss,  p.  544.  ^  Trav.  S.  1.  45,  -=  Ibid.  1.  46. 

"  Ibid.  1.  57,  perhaps  the  Obauci.  =  u,;j[.  j  150. 

"  Ibid.  1.  60.  '  Zeuss,  p.  584.  ^  jy^^  pp,  226,  227. 

»  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1135.  Wylfinga  ford.  "  Lines  916,  936. 

"  Line  58.    They  are  the  Ylfingar  of  Norse  tradition.    Helg.  Hund. 
L5. 


64  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

examine  the  list  of  names  contained  in  the  Appen- 
dix, we  see  at  once  how  very  few  of  these  are  identi- 
fied with  the  names  recorded  in  Beowulf  and  other 
poems :  all  that  are  so  recorded,  had  probably  be- 
longed to  portions  of  the  epic  cycle ;  but  there  is 
nothing  in  the  names  themselves  to  distinguish  them 
from  the  rest ;  nothing  at  least  but  the  happy  acci- 
dent of  those  poems,  which  were  dedicated  t6  their 
praise,  having  survived.  In  the  lapse  of  years,  how 
many  similar  records  may  have  perished !  And  may 
we  not  justly  conclude  that  a  far  greater  number 
of  races  might  have  been  identified,  had  the  Ages 
spared  the  songs  in  which  they  were  sung "? 

"  Vixere  fortes  ante  Agamemnona 
Multi ;  sed  omnes  inlachrymabiles 
Urgentur,  ignotique  longa 
Nocte,  carent  quia  vate  sacro  !  " 

Whatever  periods  we  assume  for  the  division  of 
the  land  into  Marks,  or  to  what  cause  soever  we 
attribute  the  names  adopted  by  the  several  commu- 
nities, the  method  and  manner  of  their  dispersion 
remains  a  question  of  some  interest.  The  Appen- 
dix shows  a  most  surprising  distribution  of  some 
particular  names  over  several  counties  ^ :  but  this 
seems  conceivable  only  in  two  ways ;  first,  that  the 
inhabitants  of  a  Mark,  finding  themselves  pressed 

^  vEacinga  in  Eaaex,  Someraet  and  Suasex  :  Alings  in  Kent,  Doraet, 
Devonshire  and  Lincoln  :  Ardings  in  Sussex,  Berlcs  and  Northampton- 
sliire  :  Arlings  in  Devonaliire,  Gloucestershire  and  Sussex  :  Baningsin 
Hertfordshire,  Kent,  Lincolnshire  and  Salop  :  Beadings  in  Norfolk, 
Suffolk,  Surrey,  Sussex  and  the  Isle  of  "Wight :  Beiings  in  Kent,  De- 
vonshire, Herefordshire,  Lincolnshire,  Salop  and  Somerset :  Billings  in 
Bedfordshire,  Durham,  Kent,  Lancashire,  Lincolnshire,  Norfolk,  North- 
amptonshire, Northumberland,  Salop,  Sussex  and  the  Isle  of  Wight, etc. 


CH.  n.]  THE  MARK.  65 

for  room  at  home,  migrated  to  other  seats,  and 
established  a  new  community  under  the  old  desig- 
nation; or,  secondly,  that  in  the  division  of  the 
newly  conquered  soil,  men  who  had  belonged  to  one 
community  upon  the  continent,  found  themselves 
thrown  into  a  state  of  separation  here,  either  by  the 
caprice  of  the  lots,  supposing  their  immigration 
simultaneous,  or  by  the  natural  course  of  events, 
supposing  one  body  to  have  preceded  the  other. 
Perhaps  too  we  must  admit  the  possibility  of  a 
dispersion  arising  from  the  dissolution  of  ancient 
confederacies,  produced  by  internal  war.  On  the 
whole  I  am  disposed  to  look  upon  the  second  hy- 
pothesis as  applicable  to  the  majority  of  cases ; 
without  presuming  altogether  to  exclude  the  action 
of  the  first  and  third  causes.  It  is  no  doubt  diffi- 
cult to  imagine  that  a  small  troop  of  wandering 
strangers  should  be  allowed  to  traverse  a  settled 
country  in  search  of  new  habitations.  Yet,  at  first, 
there  must  have  been  abundance  of  land,  which 
conduct  and  courage  might  wring  from  its  Keltic 
owners.  Again,  how  natural  on  the  other  hand  is 
it,  that  in  the  confusion  of  conquest,  or  the  dila- 
tory course  of  gradual  occupation,  men  once  united 
should  find  their  lot  cast  apart,  and  themselves 
divided  into  distant  communities !  Nor  in  this  can 
we  recognize  anything  resembling  the  solemn  plant- 
ing 0^  a  Grecian,  far  less  of  a  Roman,  colony ;  or 
suppose  that  any  notion  of  a  common  origin  sur- 
vived to  nourish  feelings  of  friendship  between  bo- 
dies of  men,  so  established  in  different  lands.  Even 
had  such  traditions  originally  prevailed,  they  must 

VOL.  I.  F 


66  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

soon  have  perished,  when  the  Marks  coalesced  into 
the  Ga  or  Shire,  and  several  of  the  latter  became 
included  in  one  kingdom.  'Mew  interests  and 
duties  must  then  have  readily  superseded  maxims 
which  belonged  to  an  almost  obsolete  organiza- 
tiom 

But  in  truth,  to  this  question  of  dispersion  and 
relationship,  considered  in  its  widest  generality, 
there  is  no  limit  either  of  place  or  time :  it  derives, 
indeed,  some  of  its  charm  from  the  very  vagueness 
which  seems  to  defy  the  efforts  of  the  historian : 
and  even  the  conviction  that  a  positive  and  scien- 
tific result  is  unattainable,  does  not  suflSice  to  re- 
press the  anxiety  with  which  we  strive  to  lift  the 
veil  of  our  Isis.  The  question  of  every  settlement, 
large  or  small,  ultimately  resolves  itself  into  that  of 
the  original  migrations  of  mankind.  Unless  we 
can  bring  ourselves  to  adopt  the  hypothesis  of 
autochthonous  populations, — an  hypothesis  whose 
vagueness  is  not  less  than  attaches  to  a  system  of 
gradual,  but  untraced,  advances, — we  must  fall 
back  from  point  to  point,  until  we  reach  one  start- 
ing-place and  one  origin.  Every  family  that  squats 
upon  the  waste,  assumes  the  existence  of  two  fami- 
lies from  which  it  sprang :  every ;  household,  com- 
prising a  man  and  woman,  if  it  is  to  be  fruitful  and 
continue,  presupposes  two  such  households;  each 
of  these  continues  to  represent  two  more,  in  a  geo- 
metrical progression,  whose  enormous  sum  and  final 
result  are  lost  in  the  night  of  ages.  The  solitary 
who  wanders  away  into  the  uncultivated  waste,  and 
there  by  degrees  rears  a  family,  a  tribe  and  a  state, 


CH.  n.]  THE  MARK.  67 

takes  with  him  the  traditions,  the  dispositions,  the 
knowledge  and  the  ideas,  which  he  had  derived 
from  others,  in  turn  equally  indebted  to  their  pre- 
decessors. This  state  of  society,  if  society  it  can 
be  called,  is  rarely  exhibited  to  our  observation. 
The  backwoodsman  in  America,  or  the  settler  in  an 
Australian  bush,  may  furnish  some  means  of  judg- 
ing such  a  form  of  civilization ;  and  the  traditions 
of  Norway  and  Iceland  dimly  record  a  similar  pro- 
cess: but  the  solitary  labourer,  whose  constant 
warfare  with  an  exulting  and  exuberant  nature  does 
little  more  than  assure  him  an  independent  exist- 
ence, has  no  time  to  describe  the  course  and  the 
result  of  his  toils  :  and  the  progress  of  the  modern 
settler  is  recorded  less  by  himself,  than  by  a  civi- 
hzed  society,  whose  offset  he  is;  which  watches 
his  fortunes  with  interest  and  judges  them  with  in- 
telligence ;  which  finds  in  his  career  the  solution  of 
problems  that  distract  itself,  and  never  forgets  that 
he  yet  shares  in  the  cultivation  he  has  left  behind 
him. 

Still  the  manner  in  which  such  solitary  house- 
holds gradually  spread  over  and  occupy  a  country, 
must  be  nearly  the  same  in  all  places,  where  they 
exist  at  all.  The  family  increases  in  number ;  the 
arable  is  extended  to  provide  food;  the  pasture 
is  pushed  further  and  further  as  the  cattle  multi- 
ply, or  as  the  grasslands  become  less  productive. 
Along  the  banks  of  the  river  which  may  have  at- 
tracted the  feelings  or  the  avarice  of  the  wanderer, 
which  may  have  guided  his  steps  in  the  untracked 
wilderness,   or   supplied   the   road    by  which   he 

f2 


68  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

journeyed,  the  footsteps  of  civilization  move  up- 
ward :  till,  reaching  the  rising  ground  from  which 
the  streams  descend  on  either  side,  the  vanguards 
of  two  parties  meet,  and  the  watershed  becomes 
their  boundary,  and  the  place  of  meeting  for  religi- 
ous or  political  purposes.     Meantime,  the  ford,  the 
mill,  the  bridge  have  become  the  nucleus  of  a  vil- 
lage, and  the  blessings  of  mutual  intercoui-se  and 
family  bonds  have  converted  the  squatters'  settle- 
ment into  a  centre  of  wealth  aiid  happiness.     And 
in  like  manner  is  it,  where  a  clearing  in  the  forest, 
near  a  spring  or  welU, — divine,  for  its  uses  to  man, 
— has  been  made  ;  and  where,  by  slow  degrees,  the 
separated  families   discover   each   other,   and  find 
that  it  is  not  good  for  man  to  be  alone. 

This  description,  however,  will  not  strictly  apply 
to  numerous  or  extensive  cases  of  settlement,  al- 
though some  analogy  may  be  found,  if  we  substi- 
tute a  tribe  for  the  family.  Continental  Germany 
has  no  tradition  of  such  a  process ;  and  we  may 
not  unjustly  believe  the  records  of  such  in  Scandi- 
navia to  have  arisen  from  the  wanderings  of  un- 
quiet spirits,  impatient  of  control  or  rivalry,  of  cri- 
minals shrinking  from  the  consequences  of  their 
guilt,  or  of  descendants  dreading  the  blood-feud 
inherited  from  ruder  progenitors.  But  although 
systematic  and  religious  colonization,  like  that  of 
Greece,  cannot  be  assumed  to  have  prevailed,  we 
may  safely  assert  that  it  was  carried  on  far  more 

'  Water  seems  the  indispensable  condition  of  a  settlement  in  any  part 
of  the  world :  hence,  in  part,  the  worship  paid  to  it.  It  is  the  very 
key  to  the  history  of  the  East. 


CH.  II.]  THE  MARK.  69 

regularly,  and  upon  more  strict  principles  than  are 
compatible  with  capricious  and  individual  settle- 
ment^  Tradition  here  and  there  throws  light 
upon  the  causes  by  which  bodies  of  men  were  im- 
pelled to  leave  their  ancient  habitations,  and  seek 
new  seats  in  more  fruitful  or  peaceful  districts. 
The  einigration  represented  by  Hengest  has  been 
attributed  to  a  famine  at  home,  and  even  the  grave 
authority  of  history  has  countenanced  the  belief 
that  his  keels  were  driven  into  exile  :  thus  far  we 
may  assume  his  adventure  to  have  been  made  with 
the  participation,  if  not  by  the  authority,  of  the 
parent  state. 

In  general  we  may  admit  the  division  of  a  con- 
quered country,  such  as  Britain  was,  to  have  been 
conducted  upon  settled  principles,  derived  from  the 
actual  position  of  the  conquerors.  As  an  army 
they  had  obtained  possession,  and  as  an  army  they 
distributed  the  booty  which  rewarded  their  valour. 
That  they  nevertheless  continued  to  occupy  the 
land  as  families  or  cognationes,  resulted  from  the 
method  of  their  enrolment  in  the  field  itself,  where 
each  kindred  was  drawn  up  under  an  ofiicer  of 
its  own  lineage  and  appointment,  and  the  several 
members  of  the  family  served  together.    But  such  a 


^  The  solemn  apportionment  of  lands  and  dwellings  is  nowhere  more 
ohvious,  or  described  in  more  instructive  detail,  than  in  Denmark. 
Norway  and  the  Swedish  borderlands  may  have  offered  more  nume- 
rous instances  of  solitary  settling.  The  manner  of  distributing  the 
village  land  is  called  Solslript  or  Solskipti :  the  provisions  of  this  law 
are  given  by  Grimm,  Rechtsalt.  p.  539.  There  is  an  interesting  account 
of  the  formalities  used  upon  the  first  colonization  of  Iceland,  in  Geijer, 
Hist,  of  Sweden,  i.  159.     (German  translation  of  1826.) 


70  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

distribution  of  the  land  as  should  content  the  various 
small  communities  that  made  up  the  whole  force, 
could  only  be  ensured  by  the  joint  authority  of  the 
leaders,  the  concurrence  of  the  families  themselves, 
and  the  possession  of  a  sufficient  space  for  their 
ext^sion,  undisturbed  by  the  claims  of  former  oc- 
cupants, and  suited  to  the  wants  of  its  new  masters. 
What  difficulties,  what  jealousies  preceded  the  ad- 
justment of  all  claims  among  the  conquerors,  we 
cannot  hope  to  learn,  or  by  what  means  these  were 
met  and  reconciled :  but  the  divisions  themseh'es, 
so  many  of  whose  names  I  have  collected,  prove 
that,  in  some  way  or  other,  the  problem  was  suc- 
cessfully solved. 

On  the  natural  clearings  in  the  forest,  or  on 
spots  prepared  by  man  for  his  own  uses ;  in  valleys, 
bounded  by  gentle  acclivities  which  poured  down 
fertilizing  streams ;  or  on  plains  which  here  and 
there  rose,  clothed  with  verdure,  above  surround- 
ing marshes ;  slowly  and  step  by  step,  the  warlike 
colonists  adopted  the  habits  and  developed  the  cha- 
racter of  peaceful  agriculturists.  The  towns  which 
had  been  spared  in  the  first  rush  of  war,  gradually 
became  deserted,  and  slowly  crumbled  to  the  soil, 
beneath  which  their  ruins  are  yet  found  from  time 
to  time,  or  upon  which  shapeless  masses  yet  remain, 
to  mark  the  sites  of  a  civilization,  whose  bases  were 
not  laid  deep  enough  for  eternity.  All  over  Eng- 
land there  soon  existed  a  network  of  communities, 
the  principle  of  whose  being  was  separation,  as  re- 
garded each  other :  the  most  intimate  union,  as  re- 
spected the  individual  members  of  each.     Agricul- 


CH.  n.]  THE  MARK.  71 

tural,  not  commercial,  dispersed,  not  centralized, 
content  within  their  own  limits  and  little  given  to 
wandering,  they  relinquished  in  a  great  degree  the 
habits  and  feelings  which  had  united  them  as  mili- 
tary adventurers ;  and  the  spirit  which  had  achieved 
the  conquest  of  an  empire,  was  now  satisfied  with 
the  care  of  maintaining  inviolate  a  little  peaceful 
plot,  sufficient  for  the  cultivation  of  a  few  simple 
households. 


72 


CHAPTEK  III. 

THE  GA'  OR  SCl'R. 

Next  in  order  of  constitution,  if  not  of  time,  is  the 
union  of  two,  three  or  more  Marks  in  a  federal 
bond  for  purposes  of  a  religious,  judicial  or  even 
political  character.  The  technical  name  for  such 
a  union  is  in  Germany,  a  Gau  or  Bant  ^ ;  in  Eng- 
land the  ancient  name  Ga  has  been  almost  univer- 
sally superseded  by  that  of  Scir  or  Shire.  For  the 
most  part  the  natural  divisions  of  the  country  are 
the  divisions  also  of  the  Ga ;  and  the  size  of  this 
depends  upon  such  accidental  limits  as  well  as  upon 
the  character  and  dispositions  of  the  several  collec- 
tive bodies  which  we  have  called  Marks. 

The  Ga  is  the  second  and  final  form  of  unsevered 
possession ;  for  every  larger  aggregate  is  but  the  re- 
sult of  a  gradual  reduction  of  such  districts,  under 
a  higher  political  or  administrative  unity,  different 
only  in  degree  and  not  in  kind  from  what  prevailed 
individually  in  each.  The  kingdom  is  only  a  larger 
Ga  than  ordinary ;  indeed  the  Ga  itself  was  the 
original  kingdom. 

But  the  unsevered  possession  or  property  which 


'  Less  usual  are  Eitia  and  Para.     The  Norse  Herrad  may  in  some 
sense  be  compared  with  these  divisions. 


CH.  in.]  THE  GA'  OB  SCI'R.  73 

we  thus  find  in  the  Ga  is  by  no  means  to  be  consi- 
dered in  the  same  light  as  that  which  has  been  de- 
scribed in  the  Mark.  The  inhabitants  are  settled 
as  Markmen,  not  as  Ga-men :  the  cultivated  "land 
which  lies  within  the  limits  of  the  larger  commu- 
nity is  all  distributed  into  the  smaller  ones. 

As  the  Mark  contained  within  itself  the  means  of 
doing  right  between  man  and  man,  i.  e.,  its  Mark- 
mot;  as  it  had  its  principal  officer  or  judge,  and 
beyond  a  doubt  its  priest  and  place  of  religious  ob- 
servances, so  the  County,  Scir  or  Ga  had  all  these 
on  a  larger  and  more  imposing  scale ;  and  thus  it 
was  enabled  to  do  right  between  Mark  and  Mark, 
as  well  as  between  man  and  man,  and  to  decide 
those  diiferences  the  arrangement  of  which  trans- 
cended the  powers  of  the  smaller  body.     If  the 
elders  and  leaders  of  the  Mark  could  settle  the 
mode  of  conducting  the  internal  affairs  of  their  dis- 
trict, so  the  elders  and  leaders  of  the  Ga  (the  same 
leading  markmen  in  a  corporate  capacity)  could 
decide  upon  the  weightier  causes  that  affected  the 
whole  community;    and    thus   the  Scirgemot   or 
Shiremoot  was  the  completion  of  a  system  of  which 
the  Mearcmot  was  the  foundation.     Similarly,  as 
the  several  smaller  units  had  arrangements  on  a  cor- 
responding scale  for  divine  service,  so  the  greater 
and  more  important  religious  celebrations  in  which 
all  the  Marks  took  part,  could  only  be  performed 
under  the  auspices  and  by  the  authority  of  the  Ga. 
Thus  alone  could  due  provision  be  made  for  sacri- 
fices which  would  have  been  too  onerous  for  a  small 
and  poor  district,  and  an  equalization  of  burthens 


74  THE  SAXOXS  IX  EXGLAND.  [book  i. 

be  effected ;  while  the  machinery  of  government 
and  efficient  means  of  protection  were  secured. 

At  these  great  religious  rites,  accompanied  as  they 
ever  were  by  the  solemn  Ding,  placitum  or  court, 
thrice  in  the  year  the  markmen  assemlAed  unbid- 
den :  and  here  they  transacted  the  ordinary  and  rou- 
tine business  required.  On  emergencies  however, 
which  did  not  brook  delay,  the  leaders  could  issue 
their  peremptory  summons  to  a  bidden  Ding,  and 
in  this  were  then  decided  the  measures  necessary 
for  the  maintenance  and  well-being  of  the  commu- 
nity, and  the  mutual  guarantee  of  life  and  honour. 
To  the  Ga  then  probably  belonged,  as  an  unsevered 
possession,  the  lands  necessary  for  the  site  and 
maintenance  of  a  temple,  the  supply  of  beasts  for 
sacrifice,  and  the  endowment  of  a  priest  or  priests : 
perhaps  also  for  the  erection  of  a  stockade  or  for- 
tress, and  some  shelter  for  the  assembled  freemen 
in  the  Ding.  Moreover,  if  land  existed  which  from 
any  cause  had  not  been  included  within  the  limits 
of  some  Mark,  we  may  believe  that  it  became  the 
public  property  of  the  Ga,  i.  e.,  of  all  the  Marks  in 
their  corporate  capacity :  this  at  least  may  be  in- 
ferred from  the  rights  exercised  at  a  comparatively 
later  period  over  waste  lands,  by  the  constituted 
authorities,  the  Duke,  Count  or  King. 

Accident  must  more  or  less  have  determined  the 
seat  of  the  Ga-jurisdiction:  perhaps  here  and  there 
some  powerful  leading  ]\Iark,  already  in  the  pos- 
session of  a  holy  site,  may  ha^e  drawn  the  neigh- 
bouring settlers  into  its  territory :  but  as  the  pos- 
session and  guardianship  of  the  seat  of  government 


CH.  HI.]  THE  GA'  OR  SCFR.  75 

could  not  but  lead  to  the  vindication  of  certain 
privileges  and  material  advantages  to  its  holders, 
it  is  not  unreasonable  to  believe  that  where  the 
Marks  coalesced  on  equal  terms,  the  temple-lands 
would  be  placed  without  the  peculiar  territorial 
possession  of  each,  as  they  often  were  in  Greece, 
upon  the  ea^ana  or  boundary-land.  On  the  sum- 
mit of  a  range  of  hills,  whose  valleys  sufficed  for 
the  cultivation  of  the  markmen,  on  the  watershed 
from  which  the  fertilizing  streams  descended,  at 
the  point  where  the  boundaries  of  two  or  three  com- 
munities touched  one  another,  was  the  proper  place 
for  the  common  periodical  assemblages  of  the  free 
men :  and  such  sites,  marked  even  to  this  day  by 
a  few  venerable  oaks,  may  be  observed  in  various 
parts  of  England  ^. 

The  description  which  has  been  given  might  seem 
at  first  more  properly  to  relate  to  an  abstract  poli- 
tical unity  than  to  a  real  and  territorial  one :  no 
doubt  the  most  important  quality  of  the  Ga  or  Scir 
was  its  power  of  uniting  distinct  populations  for 
public  purposes :  in  this  respect  it  resembled  the 
shire,  while  the  sheriff's  court  was  still  of  some  im- 
portance ;  or  even  yet,  where  the  judges  coming 
on  their  circuit,  under  a  commission,  hold  a  shire- 
moot  or  court  in  each  shire  for  gaol-delivery.  Yet 
the  Shire  is  a  territorial  division^  as  well  as  an  abs- 
tract and  merely  legal  formulary,  although  all  the 

'  There  are  instances  which  show  that  the  custom,  afterwards  kept 
up,  of  "Trysting  Trees,"  was  an  ancient  one.  Probably  some  great 
b'ees  marked  the  site  of  the  several  jurisdictions :  I  find  mentioned  the 
scirac,  the  hundredes  treow  and  the  mearcbeam. 

"  The  Gau  itself  had  a  mark  or  boundary.    Deut.  Rechtsalt.  p.  406. 


76  THE  SAXOXS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

land  comprised  within  it  is  divided  into  parishes, 
hamlets,  vills  and  liberties. 

Strictly  speaking,  the  Shire,  apart  from  the  units 
that  make  it  up,  possesses  little  more  land  than 
that  which  the  town-hall,  the  gaol,  or  the  hospital 
may  cover.  When  for  the  two  latter  institu- 
tions we  substitute  the  fortress  of  the  king,  and 
a  cathedral,  which  was  the  people's  and  not  the 
bishop's,  we  have  as  nearly  as  possible  the  Anglo- 
saxon  shire-property,  and  the  identity, of  the  two 
divisions  seems  proved.  Just  as  the  Ga  (j)agus) 
contains  the  Marks  (yicos),  and  the  territory  of 
them  all,  taken  together,  makes  up  the  territory  of 
the  Ga,  so  does  the  Shire  contain  hamlets,  parishes 
and  liberties,  and  its  territorial  expanse  is  distri- 
buted into  them.  As  then  the  word  Mark  is  used 
to  denote  two  distinct  things, — a  territorial  division 
and  a  corporate  body, — so  does  the  word  Ga  or 
Scir  denote  both  a  machinery  for  government  and 
a  district  in  which  such  machinery  prevails.  The 
number  of  Marks  included  in  ^  single  Ga  must  have 
varied  partly  with  the  variations  of  the  land  itself, 
its  valleys,  hills  and  meadows :  to  this  cause  may 
have  been  added  others  arising,  to  some  extent, 
from  the  original  military  organization  and  distri- 
bution, from  the  personal  character  of  a  leader,  or 
from  the  peculiar  tenets  and  customs  of  a  particular 
Mark.  But  proximity,  and  settlement  upon  the 
same  land,  with  the  accompanying  participation 
in  the  advantages  of  wood  and  water,  are  ever  the 
most  active  means  of  uniting  men  in  religious  and 
social  communities;  and  it  is  therefore  reasonable 


CH.  m.]  THE  GA'  OR  SCI'E.  77 

to  believe  that  the  influence  most  felt  in  the  ar- 
rangement of  the  several  Gas  was  in  fact  a  territo- 
rial one,  depending  upon  the  natural  conformation 
of  the  country. 

Some  of  the  modern  shire-divisions  of  England 
in  all  probability  have  remained  unchanged  from 
the  earliest  times;  so  that  here  and  there  a  now 
existent  Shire  may  be  identical  in  territory  with  an 
aacient  Ga.  But  it  may  be  doubted  whether  this 
observation  can  be  very  extensively  applied :  ob- 
scure as  is  the  record  of  our  old  divisions,  what 
little  we  know,  favours  the  supposition  that  the  ori- 
ginal Gas  were  not  only  more  numerous  than  our 
Shires,  but  that  these  were  not  always  identical  in 
their  boundaries  with  those  Gas  whose  locality  can 
be  determined. 

The  policy  or  pedantry  of  Norman  chroniclers 
has  led  them  to  pass  over  in  silence  the  names 
of  the  ancient  divisions,  which  nevertheless  were 
known  to  them^.  Wherever  they  have  occasion  to 
refer  to  our  Shires,  they  do  so  by  the  names  they 
still  bear ;  thus  Florence  of  Worcester  and  William  of 
Malmesbury  name,  to  the  south  of  the  Humber,  Kent, 
'Wiltshire,  Berkshire,  Dorset,  Sussex,  Southamp- 
ton, Surrey,  Somerset,  Devonshire,  Cornwall,  Glou- 
cester, Worcester,  Warwick,  Cheshire,  Derby,  Staf- 
ford, Shropshire,  Hereford,  Oxford,  Buckingham, 


'  "  Et  ne  longum  faciani,  sigillatim  enumeratis  provinciis  quas  vas- 
taverunt,  hoc  sit  ad  summam  compleeti,  quod,  cum  numerentur  in 
AflgKa  triginfa  duo  pagi,  illi  iam  aedecim  invaserant,  quorum  nomina 
propter  barbariem  linguae  scribere  refugio."  Will.  Malm.,  Gest.  Reg. 
lib.  ii.  §  165. 


78  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Hertford,  Huntingdon,  Bedford,  Northampton,  Lei- 
cester, Lincoln,  Nottingham,  Cambridge,  Norfolk, 
Suffolk  and  Essex,  comprising  with  Middlesex 
thirty-two  of  the  shires,  out  of  forty  into  which 
England  is  now  distributed. 

Yet  even  these  names  and  divisions  are  of  great 
antiquity  :  Asser,  in  his  life  of  J31fred,  mentions  by 
name,  Berkshire,  Essex,  Kent,  Surrey,  Somerset, 
Sussex,  Lincoln,  Dorset,  Devon,  Wiltshire  and 
Southampton,  being  a  third  of  the  whole  number : 
unfortunately,  from  his  work  being  composed  in 
Latin  and  his  consequent  use  of  paga,  we  cannot 
tell  how  many  of  these  divisions  were  considered 
by  him  as  Scir. 

The  Saxon  Chronicles,  during  the  period  ante- 
rior to  the  reign  of  Alfred,  •  seem  to  know  only 
the  old  general  divisions :  thus  we  have  Cantwara 
land,  Kent^;  Westseaxan,  Su'Sseaxan,  Eastseaxan, 
Middleseaxan,  Wessex,  Sussex,  Essex,  Middlesex : 
Eastengle,  Eastanglia:  Nor'Sanhymbra  land,  Su- 
^anhymbra  land,  Myrcna  land,  Northumberland, 
South umberland,  Mercia  :  Lindisware  and  Lindisse, 
Lincolnshire:  Sii'Srige,  Surrey;  Wiht,  the  Isle  of 
Wight;  Hwiccas,  the  Hwiccii  in  Gloucestershire 
and  Worcestershire^;  Merscware,  the  people  of 
Eomney  Marsh :  Wilssetan,  Dornssetan  and  Sumor- 
ssetan,  Wiltshire,  Dorsetshire  and  Somersetshire^. 

'  The  division  of  Kent  into  East  Centingas  and  West  Oentingas  is 
retained  by  the  charters  till  late  in  the  eleventh  century. 

^  "  Oirrenceaster  adiit,  qui  Britannice  Cairceri  nominatur,  quae  est 
in  meridiana  parte  Huicciorum."     Asser,  Vit.  ^Ifr.  an.  879. 

'  Where  the  country  is  considered  as  a  territorial  division,  rather 
than  with  reference  to  the  race  that  possesses  it,  instead  of  ssetan  or 


CH.  III.]  THE  GA'  OK  SOI'R.  79 

But  after  the  time  of  Alfred,  the  different  ma- 
nuscripts of  the  Chronicles  usually  adopt  the  word 
Scir,  in  the  same  places  as  we  do,  and  with  the  same 
meaning.  Thus  we  find,  Bearrucscir,  Bedanford- 
scir,  Buccingahamscir,  Defenascir,  Deorabyscir, 
Eoforwicscir,  Gleawanceasterscir,  Grantabrycgscir, 
Hamtunscir  (Southampton),  Plamtunscir  (North- 
ampton), Heortfordscir,  Herefordscir,  Huntandun- 
scir,  Legeceasterscir,  Lindicolnascir,  Oxnafordscir, 
Scrobbesbyrigscir  (but  also  Scrobsetan),  Snotinga- 
hamscir,  Stseffordscir,  Waeringwicscir  or  Wsering- 
scir,  Wigraceasterscir,  and  Wiltunscir :  Middel- 
seaxe,  Eastseaxe,  Sii^seaxe,  SuSrige  and  Cent  re- 
main :  Eastengle  is  not  divided  into  Norfolk  and 
Suffolk.  Thus,  out  of  the  thirty-two  shires  south 
of  the  Humber,  which  Florence  and  William  of 
Malmesbury  mention,  the  Chronicles  note  twenty- 
six,  of  which  twenty-one  are  distinguished  as  shires 
by  the  word  scir. 

In  Beda  nothing  of  the  kind  is  to  be  found :  the 
general  scope  of  his  Ecclesiastical  History  rendered 
it  unnecessary  for  him  to  descend  to  minute  details, 
and  besides  the  names  of  races  and  kingdoms,  he 
mentions  few  divisions  of  the  land.  Still  he  notices 
the  Provincia  Huicciorum:  the  Middelangli  or 
Angli  Mediterranei,  a  portion  of  the  Mercians :  the 
Mercii  Australes  and  Aquilonales :  the  Eegio  Suder- 
geona  or  Surrey :  the  Eegio  Loidis  or  Elmet  near 
York:  the  Provincia  Meanwarorum,  or  Hundreds 

setan,  the  settlers,  we  have  saete,  the  land  settled ;  thua  Siimorseete.  So 
Eastseaxe  for  Eastseaxan  or  Eastseaxna  land  ;  Cent  for  Oentingas  or 
Cautware ;  Lindisse  for  Lindisware. 


80  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  East  and  West  Meon  in  Southampton;  the  Regio 
Gyrwiorum  in  which  Peterborough  lies,  and  dis- 
tinct from  this,  the  Australes  Gyrwii  or  South 
Gyrwians. 

The  Appendix  to  the  Chronicles  of  Florence  of 
Worcester  supplies  us  with  one  or  two  names  of 
small  districts,  not  commonly  found  in  other  au- 
thors. One  of  these  is  the  Mercian  district  of  the 
Westangles  or  West  Hecan,  ruled  over  by  Mere- 
wald;  in  whose  country  were  the  Meegsetan,  or 
people  of  Hereford,  who  are  sometimes  reckoned 
to  the  Hwiccas,  or  inhabitants  of  Worcester  and 
Gloucester  1.  Another,  the  Middleangles,  had  its 
bishopric  in  Leicester:  the  Southangles,  whose  bi- 
shop sat  at  Dorchester  in  Oxfordshire,  consequently 
comprised  the  counties  down  to  the  Thames.  The 
Northangles  or  Mercians  proper  had  their  bishop  in 
Lichfield.  Lastly  it  has  been  recorded  that  Malmes- 
bury  in  Wiltshire  was  in  Provincia  Septonia^. 

But  we  are  not  altogether  without  the  means  of 
carrying  this  enquiry  further.  We  have  a  record 
of  the  divisions  which  must  have  preceded  the  dis- 
tribution of  this  country  into  shires :  they  are  un- 
fortunately not  numerous,  and  the  names  are  gene- 
rally very  difficult  to  explain :  they  have  so  long 
become  obsolete,  that  it  is  now  scarcely  possible  to 
identify  them.  Nor  need  this  cause  surprise,  when 
we  compare  the  oblivion  into  which  they  have  fal- 

'  "  Oivitas  Wigomia  .  .  .  .  et  tunc  et  nunc  totius  Hwicciae  vel  Mage- 
setauiae  metropolis  extitit  famosa."  App.  Jlor.  Wigorn.,  Episc.  Ilwic- 
ciorum. 

2  Vit.  Aldh.  Whart.  Ang.  Sacr.  ii.  3,  and  MS.  Harl.  350  ;  but  the 
autograph  MS.,  Ed.  Hamilton  in  Rolls  Series,  reads  rightly  Saxonia. 


CH.  in.] 


THE  GA'  OR  SCrU. 


81 


len  with  the  sturdy  resistance  offered  by  the  names 
of  the  Marks,  and  their  long  continuance  through- 
out all  the  changes  which  have  befallen  our  race. 
The  Gas,  which  were  only  political  bodies,  became 
readily  swallowed  up  and  lost  in  shires  and  king- 
doms :  the  Marks,  which  had  an  individual  being, 
and  as  it  were  personality  of  their  own,  passed 
easily  from  one  system  of  aggregations  to  another, 
without  losing  anything  of  their  peculiar  character  : 
and  at  a  later  period  it  will  be  seen  that  this  indi- 
Tiduality  became  perpetuated  by  the  operation  of 
our  ecclesiastical  institutions. 

A  very  important  document  is  printed  by  Sir 
Henry  Spelman  in  his  Glossary,  under  the  head 
Hida.  In  its  present  condition  it  is  comparatively 
modern,  but  many  of  the  entries  supply  us  with 
information  obviously  derived  from  the  most  re- 
mote antiquity,  and  these  it  becomes  proper  to 
talie  into  consideration.  The  document  seems  to 
have  been  intended  as  a  guide  either  to  the  taxation 
or  the  miHtary  force  of  the  kingdom,  and  professes 
to  give  the  number  of  hides  of  land  contained  in 
the  various  districts.     It  runs  as  follows  i : 


Myrcna  continet 

Hvdas. 

30000 

Lindesfarona  . 

Ilydaa. 

7000 

"\^'okensetna  .     . 

7000 

SuS  Gyrwa    . 

600 

'iVesterna .     .     . 

7000 

Nor'S  Gyrwa . 

600 

Pecsetna    .     .     . 

1200 

EastWixna  . 

300 

Elmedsetna    .     . 

600 

West  Wixna . 

600 

'  I  have  not  adhered  stricdy  to  Spelman's  copy,  the  details  of  which 
are  in  several  cases  incorrect,  but  have  collated  others  where  it  seemed 


VOL.  I. 


82 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


[book  I. 


Hydas. 

Spalda  .     .     . 

600 

Wigesta    .     .     . 

900 

Herefinna .     .     . 

1200 

Sweordora      .     . 

300 

Ey/la    .     .     . 

300 

Hwicca 

300 

Wihtgara .     . 

600 

Noxga  ga  .     . 

.     5000 

Ohtga  ga  .     . 

.     2000 

Hwynca     . 

7000 

Cilternsetna  . 

.     4000 

Hendrica  . 

.     3000 

Hydfls. 

Unecunga .     . 

1200 

Arosetna  .     .     . 

600 

Fearfinga  .     . 

300 

Belmiga     .     . 

600 

Wi'Seringa     . 

.       600 

East  Willa     . 

600 

WestWilla   . 

600 

East  Engle     . 

.  30000 

East  Seaxna  . 

7000 

Cantwarena    . 

15000 

Sii^  Seaxna    . 

.     7000 

West  Seaxna . 

1000001 

The  entries  respecting  Mercia,  Eastanglia  and 
Wessex  could  hardly  belong  to  any  period  anterior 
to  that  of  Alfred.  For  Mercia  previous  to  the 
Danish  wars  must  certainly  have  contained  more 
than  30,000  hides :  vphile  Eastanglia  cannot  have 
reached  so  large  a  sum  till  settled  by  Gu'Sorm's 
Danes :  nor  is  it  easy  to  believe  that  Wessex,  apart 
from  Kent  and  Sussex,  should  have  numbered 
one  hundred  thousand  in  the  counties  of  Surrey, 
Hampshire,  Dorset,  Wiltshire,  vpith  parts  of  Berk- 
shire, Somerset  and  Devon,  much  before  the  time 
of  ^'Selstan^.  A  remarkable  variation  is  found 
between  the  amounts  stated  in  this  list  and 
those  given  by  Beda,  as  respects  some  of  the  en- 
tries :  thus  Mercia,  here  valued  at  30,000  hides,  is 
reckoned  in  the  Ecclesiastical  History  at  12,000 


'  The  total  sum  thus  reckoned  is  243,600  hides. 

^  About  the  year  647,  Wessex  numbered  only  9000  hides. 


CH.  m.]  THE  GA'  OR  SCI'R.  83 

only^:  Hwiccas  are  reckoned  at  300:  they  con- 
tained 600  hides;  Wight,  reckoned  at  600,  con- 
tained 1200.  On  the  other  hand  Kent  and  Sussex 
are  retained  at  the  ancient  valuation. 

It  is  nevertheless  impossible  to  doubt  that  the 
greater  number  of  the  names  recorded  in  this  list 
are  genuine,  and  of  the  highest  antiquity.  A  few 
of  them  can  be  recognized  in  the  pages  of  very 
early  writers:  thus  Gyrwa,  Elmet,  Lindisfaran, 
Wihtgare,  and  Hwiccas,  are  mentioned  by  Beda  in 
the  eighth  century.  Some  we  are  still  able  to  iden- 
tify with  modern  districts. 

Mercia  I  imagine  to  be  that  portion  of  Burgred's 
kingdom,  which  upon  its  division  by  the  victorious 
Danes  in  874,  they  committed  as  a  tributary  royalty 
to  Ceolwulf ;  which  subsequently  came  into  the 
hands  of  -lElfred,  by  the  treaty  of  Wedmor  in  878, 
and  was  by  him  erected  into  a  duchy  under  his 
daughter  M'SelA^d,  and  her  husband.  Wokensetna 
may  possibly  be  the  Ga  of  the  Wrocensetan,  the 
people  about  the  Wrekin  or  hill-country  of  Somer- 
set, Dorset  and  Devon.  The  Pecsetan  appear  to  be 
the  inhabitants  of  the  Peakland,  or  Derbyshire :  the 
Elmedsetan,  those  of  Elmet,  the  ancient  British 
Loidis,  an  independent  district  in  Yorkshire :  Lin- 
disfaran are  the  people  of  Lindisse,  a  portion  of 
Lincolnshire :  North  and  South  Gyrwa  were  pro- 
bably in  the  Mark  between  Eastanglia  and  Mercia : 

'  The  twelve  thousand  hides  counted  by  Beda  (Hist.  Eccl.  iii.  24)  to 
the  South  and  North  Mercians  may  however  be  exclusive  of  the  West- 
angles  and  other  parts  of  the  great  Mercian  kingdom. 

g2 


84  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

as  Peterborough  was  in  North  Gyrwa  land,  this 
must  have  comprised  a  part  of  Northamptonshire : 
and  Ji'Sel^ry'S  derived  her  right  to  Ely  from  her 
first  husband,  a  prince  of  the  South  Gyrwians ;  this 
district  is  therefore  supposed  to  have  extended  over 
a  part  of  Cambridgeshire  and  the  isle  of  Ely.  Spalda 
may  be  the  tract  stretching  to  the  north-east  of 
these,  upon  the  river  Welland,  in  which  still  lies 
Spalding.  The  Hwiccas  occupied  Worcestershire 
and  Gloucestershire  ^,  and  perhaps  extended  into 
Herefordshire,  to  the  west  of  the  Severn.  The 
Wihtgaras  are  the  inhabitants  of  the  Isle  of  Wight ; 
and  the  Ciltemsetan  were  the  people  who  owned 
the  hill  and  forest  land  about  the  Chilterns,  verging 
towards  Oxfordshire,  and  very  probably  in  the 
Mark  between  Mercia  and  Wessex. 

I  fear  that  it  will  be  impossible  to  identify  any 
more  of  these  names,  and  it  does  not  appear  pro- 
bable that  they  supply  us  with  anything  like  a  com- 
plete catalogue  of  the  English  Gas.  Setting  aside 
the  fact,  that  no  notice  seems  to  be  taken  of  Nor- 
thumberland, save  the  mention  of  the  little  princi- 
pality of  Elmet,  and  that  the  local  divisions  of 
Eastanglia,  Kent,  Essex,  Sussex  and  Wessex  are 
passed  over  in  the  general  names  of  the  kingdoms, 
we  look  in  vain  among  them  for  names  known  to 
us  from  other  sources,  and  which  can  hardly  have 


'  Cirencester  was  in  the  south  of  the  Hwiccas.  Gloucester,  Worcester, 
and  Pershore  were  all  in  this  district.  It  was  separated  from  Wiltshire 
in  Wessex  by  the  Thames,  and  the  ford  at  Cricklade  was  a  pass  often 
disputed  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  border-lands. 


CH.  in.]  THE  GA'  OR  SCI'K.  85 

been  other  than  those  of  Gas.  Thus  we  have  no 
mention  of  the  Tonsetan,  whose  district  lay  appa- 
rently upon  the  banks  of  the  Severn  ^ ;  of  the  Mean- 
ware,  or  land  of  the  Jutes,  in  Hampshire ;  of  the 
Meegsetan,  or  West  Hecan,  in  Herefordshire;  of  the 
Merscware  in  West  Kent ;  or  of  the  Gedingas,  who 
occupied  a  tract  in  the  province  of  Middlesex  2. 
Although  it  is  possible  that  these  divisions  are  in- 
cluded in  some  of  the  larger  units  mentioned  in  our 
list,  they  still  furnish  an  argument  that  the  names 
of  the  Gas  were  much  more  numerous  than  they 
would  appear  from  the  list  itself,  and  that  this 
marks  only  a  period  of  transition. 

It  is  clear  that  when  William  of  Malmesbury  men- 
tions thirty-two  shires  as  making  up  the  whole  of  Eng- 
land, he  intends  only  England  south  oftheHumber. 
The  list  we  have  been  examining  contains  thirty-four 
entries;  of  all  the  names  therein  recorded,  one 
only  can  be  shown  to  lie  to  the  north  of  that  river : 
from  this  however  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  suppose 
that  the  whole  of  England  is  intended  to  be  com- 
prised in  the  catalogue.  Even  admitting  this,  we 
cannot  but  conclude  that  these  divisions  were  more 
numerous  than  our  shires,  seeing  that  large  districts, 
such  as  Mercia,  Wessex  and  Eastanglia,  are  entered 
only  under  one  general  head  respectively. 

The  origin  of  the  Ga  in  the  federal  union  of  two 
or  more  Marks  is  natural,  and  must  be  referred  to 
periods  far  anterior  to  any  historical  record :  that 
of  the  division  into  Shires,  as  well  as  the  period 
at  which  this  arose,  are   less   easily  determined. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  26:.  ^  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  101. 


86  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

But  we  have  evidence  that  some  division  into  shires 
was  known  in  Wessex  as  early  as  the  end  of  the 
seventh  or  beginning  of  the  eighth  century,  since 
Ini  provides  for  the  case  where  a  plaintiff  cannot 
obtain  justice  from  his  shireman  or  judge  ^ ;  and 
the  same  prince  declares  that  if  an  ealdorman  com- 
pounds a  felony,  he  shall  forfeit  his  shire  ^ ;  while 
he  further  enacts  that  no  man  shall  secretly  with- 
draw from  his  lord  into  another  shire  ^.  As  it  will 
be  shown  hereafter  that  a  territorial  jurisdiction  is 
inseparably  connected  with  the  rank  of  a  duke  or 
ealdorman,  I  take  the  appearance  of  these  officers 
in  Mercia,  during  the  same  early  period,  to  be  evi- 
dence of  the  existence  of  a  similar  division  there. 
Its  cause  appears  to  me  to  lie  in  the  consolidation 
of  the  royal  power.  As  long  as  independent  asso- 
ciations of  freemen  were  enabled  to  maintain  their 
natural  liberties,  to  administer  their  own  affairs  un- 
disturbed by  the  power  of  strangers,  and  by  means 
of  their  own  private  alliances  to  defend  their  terri- 
tories and  their  rights,  the  old  division  into  Gas 
might  continue  to  exist.  But  the  centralization  of 
power  in  the  hands  of  the  king  implies  a  more  ar- 
tificial system.  It  is  more  convenient  for  judicial 
and  administrative  purposes,  more  profitable,  and 
more  safe  for  the  ruler,  to  have  districts  governed 
by  his  own  officers,  and  in  which  a  territorial  unity 
shall  supersede  the  old  bonds  of  kinsmanship  :  cen- 
tralization is  hardly  compatible  with  family  tradi- 
tion.    The  members  of  the  Ga  met  as  associated 

1  Ini,  §.8.  Thorpe,  i.  106.  '  Ini,  §  36.  Thorpe,  i.  124. 

"  Ini,  §  39.  Thorpe,  i.  126. 


CH.  m]  THE  G-V  OR  SCI'R.  87 

freemen,  under  the  guidance  of  their  own  natural 
leaders,  and  formed  a  substantive  unit  or  small 
state,  which  might,  or  might  not,  stand  in  relations 
of  amity  to  similar  states.  The  Shire  was  a  poli- 
tical division,  presided  over  by  an  appointed  officer, 
forming  part  only  of  a  general  system,  and  no  longer 
endowed  with  the  high  political  rights  of  self-govern- 
ment, in  their  fullest  extent.  I  can  imagine  the  Ga, 
but  certainly  not  the  Shire,  declaring  war  against 
a  neighbour.  As  long  as  the  Ga  could  maintain 
itself  as  a  little  republic,  principality,  or  even  king- 
dom, it  might  exist  unscathed :  but  as  the  smaller 
kings  were  rooted  out,  theii'  lands  and  people  in- 
corporated with  larger  unions,  and  powerful  mon- 
archies rose  upon  their  ruins,  it  is  natural  that  a 
system  of  districts  should  arise,  based  entirely  upon 
a  teiTitorial  division.  Such  districts,  without  pecu- 
liar, indi\idual  character  of  their  own,  or  principle 
of  internal  cohesion,  must  have  appeared  less  dan- 
gerous to  usurpation  than  the  ancient  gentile  ag- 
gregations. 


88 


CHAPTER  IV. 

LANDED  POSSESSION.     THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD. 

Possession  of  a  certain  amount  of  land  in  the  di- 
strict was  the  indispensable  condition  of  enjoying 
the  privileges  and  exercising  the  rights  of  a  free- 
man 1.     There  is  no  trace  of  such  a  qualification  as 

'  Even  till  tlie  latest  period,  personal  property  was  not  reckoned  in 
the  distinction  of  ranks,  although  land  was.  No  amount  of  mere  chat- 
tels, gold,  silver,  or  goods,  could  give  the  Saxon  franchise.  See  the 
ordinance  Be  .Wergyldum,  §  10.  Be  Ge^incSum,  §  2.  Thorpe,  i.l89, 
191.  This  is  a  fundamental  principle  of  Teutonic  law :  "  Ut  nullum 
liberum  sine  mortali  crimine  liceat  inservire,  nee  de  haereditate  sua  ex- 
pellere ;  sed  liheri,  qui  iustis  legibus  deserviunt,  sine  impedimento  hae- 
reditates  suas  possideant.  Quamvis  pauper  sit,  tamen  libertatem  suam 
nou  perdat,  nee  haereditatem  suam,  nisi  ex  spontanea  voluntate,  se 
alioui  tradere  voluerit,  hoc  potestatem  habeat  faciendi."  Lex  Alam. 
Tit.  I.  cap.  1.  Lex  Baiovar.  Tit.  6.  cap.  3.  §  1.  Eichhorn,  i.  328, 
note  d.  Loss  of  land  entailed  loss  of  condition  in  England,  long  after 
the  establishment  of  our  present  social  system.  A  beautiful  passage  to 
this  effect  occurs  in  the  play  of  "A  Woman  killed  with  kindness":  a 
gentleman  refuses  to  part  with  his  last  plot  of  ground,  on  this  account : 

"  Alas,  alas !  't  is  all  trouble  hath  left  me 
To  cherishe  me  and  my  poor  sister's  life. 
If  this  were  sold,  our  names  should  then  he  quite 
Razed  from  the  bedroll  of  gentility. 
You  see  what  hard  shift  we  have  made  to  keep  it 
Allied  still  to  our  own  name.    This  palm,  you  see, 
Labour  hath  glow'd  within;  her  silver  brow. 
That  never  tasted  a  rough  winter's  blast 
Without  a  mask  or  fan,  doth  with  a  grace 
Defy  cold  winter  and  his  storms  outface  !  " 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  89 

constituted  citizenship  at  Athens  or  Rome :  among 
our  forefathers,  the  exclusive  idea  of  the  city  had 
indeed  no  sway.  They  formed  voluntary  associa- 
tions upon  the  land,  for  mutual  benefit ;  the  quali- 
fication by  birth,  as  far  as  it  could  be  of  any  im- 
portance, was  inferred  from  the  fact  of  admission 
among  the  community  ;  and  gelondan,  or  those  who 
occupied  the  same  land,  were  taken  to  be  connected 
in  blood  1.  An  inquiry  into  the  pedigree  of  a  man 
who  presented  himself  to  share  in  the  perils  of  the 
conquest  or  the  settlement,  would  assuredly  have 
appeared  superfluous ;  nor  was  it  more  likely  to  be 
made,  when  secure  enjoyment  came  to  reward  the 
labours  of  invasion.  In  fact  the  Germanic  settle- 
ments, whether  in  their  origin  isolated  or  collective, 
are  based  throughout  upon  the  idea  of  common 
property  in  land.  It  is  not  the  city,  but  the  coun- 
try, that  regulates  their  form  of  life  and  social  in- 
stitutions :  as  Tacitus  knew  them,  they  bore  in  ge- 
neral the  character  of  disliking  cities :  "  It  is  well 
enough  known,"  he  says,  "  that  none  of  the  Ger- 
man populations  dwell  in  cities;  nay  that  they 
will  not  even  suff'er  continuous  building,  and  house 
joined  to  house.  They  live  apart,  each  by  himself, 
as  the  woodside,  the  plain  or  the  fresh  spring  at- 
tracted him  "2.  Thus  the  Germanic  community  is 
in  some  sense  adstricta  glehae,  bound  to  the  soil : 

'  In  MS.  glossaries  we  find  gelondan  rendered  hj  fratrueles.  In  ad- 
vanced periods  only  can  there  be  a  distinction  between  tlie  family,  and 
the  local,  distributions :  Suidas,  citing  Xanthus,  says  the  Lydians  made 
a  solemn  supplication  to  the  gods,  Trayyevei  rt  Km  wavSr]nei.  See  Nie- 
buhr  on  the  Patrician  Houses,  i.  267. 

'  Mor.  Germ.  c.  16. 


90  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

its  members  are  sharers  in  the  arable,  the  forest  and 
the  marsh,  the  waters  and  the  pastures :  their  bond 
of  union  is  a  partnership  in  the  advantages  to  be 
derived  from  possession  of  the  land,  an  individual 
interest  in  a  common  benefit. 

The  district  occupied  by  a  body  of  new  settlers 
was  divided  by  lot  in  various  proportions  ^.  Yet  it 
is  certain  that  not  all  the  land  was  so  distributed ; 
a  quantity  sufficient  to  supply  a  proper  block  of 
arable^  to  each  settler,  was  set  apart  for  divi- 
sion ;  while  the  surplus  fitted  for  cultivation,  the 
marshes  and  forests  less  suited  to  the  operations  of 
the  plough,  and  a  great  amount  of  fine  grass  or 
meadow-land,  destined  for  the  maintenance  of  cat- 
tle, remained  in  undivided  possession  as  commons. 
At  first  too,  it  is  clear,  from  what  has  been  said  in 
the  second  chapter,  that  considerable  tracts  were 
left  purposely  out  of  cultivation  to  form  the  marches 
or  defences  of  the  several  communities.  But  those 
alone  whose  share  in  the  arable  demonstrated  them 

^  The  traces  of  tMs  mode  of  distribution  are  numerous.  Hengest 
forcibly  occupying  the  Frisian  territory,  is  said  to  do  so,  elne,  unhyltme, 
violently  and  without  casting  of  lots.  Bedw.  1.  2187, 2251.  The  Law 
of  the  Burgundians  calls  hereditary  land,  "  terra  sortis  titulo  acquisita," 
in  contradistinction  to  chattels  taken  by  purchase.  Lex  Burg.  Tit.  1. 
cap.  1,  2.  Eichhorn,  i.  360,  400,  note  a.  Godred,  having  subdued  the 
Manxmen,  divided  their  land  among  his  followers  by  lot.  "  Godredus 
sequenti  die  obtionem  exercitui  suo  dedit,  ut  si  mallent  Manniam  inter 
se  dividere,  etin  ea  habitare;  vel  cunotam  subatantiam  terrae  accipere, 
et  ad  propria  remeare."  Ohron.  Manniae.  (Cott.  MS.  Jul.  A.  VII.  fol. 
32.)  Upon  the  removal  of  St.  OulSberht's  relics  to  Durham,  the  first 
care  was  to  eradicate  the  forest  that  covered  the  land ;  the  next,  to  dis- 
tribute the  clearing  by  lot :  "  eradicata  itaque  silva,  et  unicuique  man- 
sionibus  sorte  distributis,"  etc.     Simeon.  Hist.  Dunelm.  Eccl.  §  37. 

^  Words  denoting  measures  of  land  have  very  frequently  reference 
to  the  plough  :  thus  geoc,  furlang,  sulung,  aratrum,  carucata,  etc. 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  91 

to  be  members  of  the  little  state,  could  hope  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  advantages  of  the  commons  of  pas- 
ture :  like  the  old  Roman  patricians,  they  derived 
from  their  haeredium  benefits  totally  incommensu- 
rate with  its  extent.  Without  such  share  of  the 
arable,  the  man  formed  no  portion  of  the  state ;  it 
was  his  franchise,  his  political  qualification,  even 
as  a  very  few  years  ago  a  freehold  of  inconsider- 
able amount  sufficed  to  enable  an  Englishman  to 
vote,  or  even  be  voted  for,  as  a  member  of  the 
legislature, — to  be,  as  the  Greeks  would  call  it,  in 
the  TToAireia, — a  privilege  which  the  utmost  wealth 
in  [copyhold  estates  or  chattels  could  not  confer. 
He  that  had  no  land  was  at  first  unfree  :  he  could 
not  represent  himself  and  his  interests  in  the  courts 
or  assemblies  of  the  freemen,  but  must  remain  in 
the  mund  or  hand  of  another  i, — a  necessary  con- 
sequence of  a  state  of  society  in  which  there  is 
indeed  no  property  but  land,  in  other  words,  no 
market  for  its  produce. 

From  the  mode  of  distribution  it  is  probable 
that  each  share  was  originally  called  Hlyt  (sors, 
kXiJiooc),  it  derived  however  another  and  more  com- 
mon name  from  its  extent  and  nature.  The  ordinary 
Anglosaxon  words  are  Higid^  (in  its  contracted 
and  almost  universal  form  Hid)  and  Hi  wise.  The 
Latin  equivalents  which  we  find  in  the  chronicles 
and  charters  axe,familia,  cassatus,  mansus,  mansa, 

'  irpouTorov  y€ypa.(f>dai, ,  to  be  enrolled  under  some  one's  patronage  : 
to  he  in  his  mund  and  borh.  &itt  ov  Kpcovros  Trpoordrou  yeypa^ojuu. 
(Ed.  Tyi.  411. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  240. 


92  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

mansio,  manens  and  terra  tributarii.  The  words 
Hid  and  Hiwisc  are  similar,  if  not  identical,  in 
meaning :  they  stand  in  close  etymological  relation 
to  Higan,  Hiwan,  the  family,  the  man  and  wife, 
and  thus  perfectly  justify  the  Latin  terms  familia 
and  cassatus  i,  by  which  they  are  translated.  The 
Hid  then,  or  Hide  of  land,  is  the  estate  of  one 
household,  the  amount  of  land  sufficient  for  the 
support  of  one  family  ^.  It  is  clear  however  that 
this  could  not  be  an  invariable  quantity,  if  the 
households  were  to  be  subsisted  on  an  equal  scale : 
it  must  depend  upon  the  original  quality  and  con- 
dition of  the  soil,  as  well  as  upon  manifold  contin- 
gencies of  situation — climate,  aspect,  accessibility 
of  water  and  roads,  abundance  of  natural  manures, 
proximity  of  marshes  and  forests,  in  short  an  end- 
less catalogue  of  varying  details.  If  therefore  the 
Hide  contained  a  fixed  number  of  acres  all  over 
England,  and  all  the  freemen  were  to  be  placed  in  a 
position  of  equal  prosperity,  we  must  assume  that 
in  the  less  favoured  districts  one  Hide  would  not 
suffice  for  the  establishment  of  one  man,  but  that 
his  allotment  must  have  comprised  more  than  that 
quantity.  The  first  of  these  hypotheses  may  be 
very  easily  disposed  of:  there  is  not  the  slightest 
ground  for  supposing  that   any  attempt   was,   or 

'  Cassatus  or  casatus,  a  married  man,  Span,  casado.  Othello  speaks 
of  his  unhoused  free  condition,  that  is,  his  bachelor  state.  It  is  by 
marriage  that  a  man  founds  a  house  or  family. 

="  Henry  of  Huntingdon  thus  defines  its  extent :  "  Hida  autem  An- 
glice  vocatur  terra  unius  aratri  cultura  sufficieus  per  annum."  lib.  Ti. 
an.  1008.  But  this  is  a  variable  amount  on  land  of  various  qualities, 
as  every  ploughman  well  knows. 


CH.  IV.  J  THE  EDEL,  m'D  OR  ALOD.  93 

could  be,  made  to  regulate  the  amount  of  individual 
possession  beyond  the  limit  of  each  community  ;  or 
that  there  ever  was,  or  could  be,  any  concert  be- 
tween different  communities  for  such  a  purpose. 
The  second  supposition  however  presents  greater 
difficulties. 

There  is  no  doubt  a  strong  antecedent  improba- 
bility of  the  Hide  having  been  alike  all  over  Eng- 
land :  isolated  as  were  the  various  conquests  which 
gradually  established  the  Saxon  rule  in  the  several 
districts,  it  can  hardly  be  supposed  that  any  agree- 
ment was  at  first  found  among  bands,  engaged  in 
continual  struggles  for  safety,  rather  than  for  ex- 
tension of  territory.  It  may  indeed  be  objected 
that  later,  when  the  work  of  conquest  had  been 
consolidated,  when,  under  the  rule  of  powerful  chief- 
tains, the  resistance  of  the  Britons  had  ceased  to 
appear  dangerous,  some  steps  may  have  been  taken 
towards  a  general  arrangement ;  those  historians 
who  please  themselves  with  the  phantom  of  a  Saxon 
confederation  under  one  imperial  head, — a  Bretwal- 
dadom — may  find  therein  an  easy  solution  of  this, 
and  many  other  difficulties  ^ :  but  still  it  seems 
little  likely  that  the  important  step  of  dividing  the 
country  should  have  been  postponed,  or  that  a  suc- 
cessful body  of  invaders  should  have  thought  it 
necessary  to  wait  for  the  consent  or  co-operation  of 
others,  whose  ultimate  triumph  was  yet  uncertain. 

'  It  does  not  seem  very  clear  why  the  idea  of  one  measure  of  land 
should  suggest  itself  to  either  many  such  chieftains  or  one  such  Bret- 
walda,  while  other  arrangements  of  a  much  more  striking  and  neces- 
sary character  remained  totally  different. 


04  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Experience  of  human  nature  would  rather  incline 
us  to  believe  that,  as  each  band  wrung  from  the 
old  masters  of  the  soil  as  much  as  sufficed  for  its 
own  support  and  safety,  it  hastened  to  realize  its 
position  and  marked  its  acquisition  by  the  stamp 
and' impress  of  individual  possession.  It  is  more- 
over probable  that,  had  any  solemn  and  general 
agreement  been  brought  about  through  the  in- 
fluence of  any  one  predominant  chief,  we  should 
not  have  been  left  without  some  record  of  a  fact, 
so  beneficial  in  itself,'  and  so  conclusive  as  to  the 
power  and  wisdom  of  its  author:  this  we  might 
not  unreasonably  expect,  even  though  we  admit 
that  such  an  event  could  only  have  taken  place  at 
the  very  commencement  of  our  history,  and  that 
such  a  division,  or,  what  is  more  difficult  still,  re- 
division  of  the  soil,  is  totally  inconsistent  with  the 
state  of  society  in  England  at  any  period  subse- 
quent to  A.D.  600 :  but  these  are  precisely  the 
cases  where  the  mythus  replaces  and  is  ancillary 
to  history. 

Against  all  these  arguments  we  have  only  one 
fact  to  adduce,  but  it  is  no  light  one.  It  is  certain 
that,  in  all  the  cases  where  a  calculation  can  be  made 
at  all,  we  do  find  a  most  striking  coincidence  with 
respect  to  the  size  of  the  Hide  in  various  parts  of 
England ;  that  such  calculation  is  applicable  to  very 
numerous  instances,  and  apparently  satisfies  the 
condition  of  the  problem  in  all;  and  lastly  that 
there  appears  no  reason  to  suppose  that  any  such 
real  change  had  taken  place  in  the  value  of  the  Hide, 
down  to  the  period  of  the  Norman  conquest  and  the 


CH.  iv.J  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  95 

compilation  of  Domesday,  according  to  the  admea- 
surement of  at  least  the  largest  and  the  most  influ- 
ential of  the  English  tribes  ^.  The  latest  of  these 
measurements  are  recorded  in  Domesday  ;  the  ear- 
liest by  Beda :  the  same  system  of  calculations,  the 
same  results,  apply  to  every  case  in  which  trial  has 
been  made  between  these  remote  limits ;  and  we  are 
thus  enabled  to  ascend  to  the  seventh  century,  a 
period  at  which  any  equality  of  possessions  is  en- 
tirely out  of  the  question,  but  at  which  the  old  unit 
of  measurement  may  still  have  retained  and  handed 
down  its  original  value  :  even  as,  with  us,  one  farm 
may  comprise  a  thousand,  another  only  two  or 
three  hundred  acres,  and  yet  the  extent  of  the  acre 
remain  unaltered. 

How  then  are  we  to  account  for  this  surprising 
fact,  in  the  face  of  the  arguments  thus  arrayed 
against  it"?  I  cannot  positively  assert,  but  still 
think  it  highly  probable,  that  there  was  some  such 
general  measure  common  to  the  Germanic  tribes 
upon  the  continent,  and  especially  in  the  north. 
Whether  originally  sacerdotal,  or  how  settled,  it  is 
useless  to  guess ;  but  there  does  seem  reason  to  be- 

'  Beda  almost  invariably  gives  Hs  numbers  as  "  iuxta  mensuram 
Anglorum."  Butin his  works  ^?j^&' denotes  all  theTeutonic  inhabitants 
of  Britain.  H.  E.  i.  cap.  1.  Again,  in  Bk.  i.  cap.  15,  he  identifies  them, 
"  Anglorum  sive  Saxonum  gens."  He  draws  no  distinction  between 
Angle  and  Saxon  tribes,  except  where  special  reasons  lead  him  to  par- 
ticularize them.  He  does  note  discrepancies  between  them,  which 
would  have  appeared  far  less  important  to  a  scientific  and  mathematical 
thinker,  as  he  was,  than  difierences  inland-divisions.  I  conclude  then 
that  no  limitation  can  be  admitted  in  his  assertion,  and  that  the  words 
"  mxtamensuram  Anglorum"  denote, "  according  to  the  admeasurement 
common  to  all  the  Germanic  inhabitants  of  Britain." 


9S  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

lieve  that  a  measure  not  widely  different  from  the 
result  of  my  own  calculations  as  to  the  Hide,  pre 
vailed  in  Germany ;  and  hence  to  conclude  that 
it  was  the  usual  basis  of  measurement  among  all 
the  tribes  that  issued  from  the  storehouse  of  na- 
tions ^. 

What  was  the  amount  then  of  the  Hide  among 
the  Anglosaxons  1  Perhaps  the  easiest  way  of 
arriving  at  a  trustworthy  conclusion  will  be  to 
commence  with  the  Anglosaxon  acre,  and  other 
subdivisions  of  the  Hide  and  the  acre  itself. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  latter  measure 
implied  ordinarily  a  quantity  of  land  not  very  dif- 
ferent in  amount  from  our  own  statute  acre  ^.  I 
argue  this  from  a  passage  in  the  dialogue  attributed 
to  ^Ifric,  where  the  ploughman  is  made  to  say : 
"  ac  geiiicodan  oxan  and  gefsestnodan  sceare  and 
cultre  mid  ^Eere  syl  selce  deeg  ic  sceal  erian  fulne 
secer  o^^e  mare ;"  that  is,  "  having  yoked  my  oxen, 
and  fastened  my  share  and  coulter,  I  am  bound  to 
plough  every  day  a  full  acre  or  more."     Now  expe- 

'  I  do  not  know  the  present  average  amount  of  a  Frisian  or  West- 
phalian  ITof,  but  the  peasant-farms  a  little  below  Cologne,  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Rhine,  average  from  30  to  50  acres.  See  Banlield,  Agri- 
cult.  Rhine,  p.  10.  The  Bavarian  Hof  of  two  Hiibm  contains  from 
50  to  QQjuchert  (each  juckert  equal  to  40,000  square  Bavarian  feet,  or 
nearly  njugerum).  This  brings  the  Hof  from  about  36  to  40  acres. 
See  Schmeller,  Baierisoh.  Worterbuoh,  ii.  142,  vac.  Hueb.  Schmel- 
ler's  remarks  on  Hof  are  worth  consulting,  and  especially  his  opinion 
that  it  may  mean  a  necessary  measure  or  portion.  See  also  Grimm, 
Rechtsalt.  p.  535. 

^  That  it  was  a  fixed  and  not  a  variable  quantity,  both  as  to  form 
and  extent,  seems  to  follow  from  the  expressions,  three  acres  wide 
(Cod.  Dipl.  No.  781),  iii  acera  braede,  i.  e.  three  acres  breadth  (Leg. 
^^elst.  iv.  5),  ix  acres  latitudine  (Leg.  Hen.  I.  cap.  xvi.). 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  97 

rience  proves  ^  that  a  plough  drawn  by  oxen  will 
hardly  exceed  this  measure  upon  average  land  at 
the  present  day;  an  acre  and  a  quarter  would  be 
a  very  hard  day's  work  for  any  ploughman  under 
such  circumstances.  Hence  for  all  practical  pur- 
poses we  may  assume  our  actual  acre  not  to  differ 
very  materially  from  the  Anglosaxon.  And  now, 
how  is  an  acre  constituted'? 

It  has  many  divisors,  all  multiplying  into  the  re- 
quired sum  of  4840  square  yards.  Thus,  it  is  clear 
that  a  length  of  4840  yards,  with  a  breadth  of 
one  yard,  is  quite  as  much  an  acre  as  a  length  of 
220  yards  with  a  breadth  of  22  (in  other  words, 
ten  chains  by  one,  or  22  X  10  X  22,)  the  usual 
and  legal  computation  :  that  is  to  say,  twenty-two 
strips  of  land  each  220  yards  long  and  one  wide, 
if  placed  together  in  any  position  will  make  up  an 
acre.  Placed  side  by  side  they  will  make  an  ob- 
long acre  whose  length  and  breadth  are  as  10:1. 
A  space  rather  more  than  sixty-nine  and  less  than 
seventy  yards  in  each  side  would  be  a  square  acre  ; 
it  is  however  not  probable  that  the  land  generally 
allowed  of  square  divisions,  but  rather  that  the 
portions  were  oblong,  a  circumstance  in  favour  of 
the  ploughman,  whose  labour  varies  very  much  with 
the  length  of  the  furrow. 

The  present  divisors  of  the  acre  are  5*5  and  40  ; 
combinations  of  these  numbers  make  up  the  parts 
not  only  of  the  acre  or  square  measure,  but  also 

'  These  calculations  rest  not  only  upon  the  authority  of  several  large, 
practical  farmers,  and  the  opinions  of  intelligent  ploughmen  -who  have 
been  consulted,  hut  also  upon  experiments  made  xmder  the  author's 
own  eye,  on  land  of  diiFerent  qualities. 

VOL.  I.  H 


98  TflE  SAX(JNS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  measure  of  length.  Thus  5-5  X  40  =  220,  which 
taken  in  yards  are  one  furlong,  and  which  with 
one  yard's  breadth  are  -^  of  an  acre.  Again,  forty 
times  5-5  yards  with  a  breadth  of  5'5  yards  (or  220 
X  5'5)  are  1210  yards  square,  "25  of  an  acre:  twice 
that,  or  forty  times  5' 5  with  a  breadth  of  eleven 
yards  are  '5  acre :  and  twice  that,  or  220  X  20  (that 
is  in  modem  surveying  ten  chains  by  one)  =  4840 
yards  or  the  whole  acre.  The  same  thing  may  be 
expressed  in  another  way :  we  may  assume  a  square 
of  6'5  yards,  which  is  called  a  rod,  perch,  or  pole : 
forty  of  these  make  a  rood,  which  is  a  furlong  with 
a  breadth  of  5"5  yards  ;  and  four  such  roods,  or  a 
furlong  with  a  breadth  of  twenty-two  yards,  are  an 
acre  of  the  oblong  form  described  above,  and  which 
is  still  the  normal  or  legal  acre. 

My  hypothesis  goes  on  to  assume  that  such,  or 
nearly  such,  were  the  elements  of  the  original  cal- 
culation :  in  fact,  that  they  were  entirely  so,  with 
the  substitution  only  of  5  for  5-5  as  a  factor.  It 
remains  to  be  asked  why  these  numbers  should  be 
fixed  upon]  Probably  from  some  notion  of  the 
mystical  properties  of  the  numbers  themselves. 
Forty  and  eight  are  of  continual  recurrence  in 
Anglosaxon  tradition,  and  may  be  considered  as 
their  sacerdotal  or  mythical  numbers :  forty  divided 
by  eight  gives  a  quotient  of  five;  and  these  may 
have  been  the  original  factors,  especially  if,  as  there 
is  every  reason  to  believe,  the  first  division  of  lands 
(whether  here  or  on  the  continent  matters  not) 
took  place  under  the  authority  and  with  the  assist- 
ance of  the  heathen  priesthood. 

If  this  were  so,  the  Saxon  acre  very  probably 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  AXOD.  99 

consisted  of  5x5x40x4=4000  square  yards*; 
in  which  case  the  rod  would  be  25  yards  square, 
and  the  furlong  200  yards  in  length.  At  the  same 
time  as  the  acres  must  be  considered  equal  for 
all  the  purposes  of  useful  calculation,  4000  Saxon 
square  yards  =  4840  English,  5  Saxon  =5*5  En- 
glish, and  200  Saxon  =  220  English  yards.  Further, 
the  Saxon  yard=l-l  English,  or  39 '6  inches.  This 
I  imagine  to  be  the  metgyrde  or  measuring-yard  of 
the  Saxon  Laws^.  If  then  we  take  5  X  5  X  40  yards 
we  have  a  block  of  land,  200  Saxon  yards  in  length, 
and  five  in  breadth ;  and  this  I  consider  to  have 
been  the  Saxon  square  Furlang  or  small  acre,  and 
to  have  been  exactly  equal  to  our  rood,  the  quaran- 
tena  of  early  calculations  ^.  There  is  no  doubt  what- 
ever of  the  Saxon  furlang  having  been  a  square  as 
well  as  long  measure*;  as  its  name  denotes,  it  is  the 

-  I  think,  for  reasons  to  be  assigned  below,  tbat  tbere  was  a  small 
as  well  as  large  acre :  in  which  case  the  small  acre  was  probably  made 
up  of  5x5x40  =  1000  sq.  y. 

^  The  yard  of  land  was  a  very  different  thing :  this  was  the  fourth 
part  of  the  Hide,  the  Virgata  of  Domesday. 

'  This  seems  clear  from  a  comparison  of  two  passages  already  quoted 
in  a  note,  but  which  must  here  be  given  more  at  length.  The  law  of 
vEtSelstan  defines  the  king's  peace  as  extending  from  his  door  to  the 
distance  on  every  side  of  three  miles,  three  furlongs,  three  acres' 
breadth,  nine  feet,  nine  palms,  and  nine  barleycorns.  The  law  of 
Henrygives  the  measurements  thus:  "  tria  miliaria,  attxes  quarantenae, 
et  ix  (?  iii)  acrae  latitudine,  et  ix  pedes  et  ix  palmae,  et  ix  grana  ordei." 
Thus  the  furlang  and  quarantena  are  identified.  But  it  is  also  clear 
that  the  series  is  a  descending  one,  and  consequently  that  the  furlang 
or  quarantena  is  longer  than  the  breadth  of  an  acre.  If,  as  is  probable, 
it  is  derived  from  quarante,  I  should  suppose  three  lengths  and  three 
breadths  of  an  acre  to  have  been  intended ;  in  fact  that  some  multiple 
of  forty  was  the  longer  side  of  the  acre. 

*  In  sne  case  we  hear  of  'Sa  bean-furlang,  the  furlong  under  bean- 
cultivation.    Ood  Dipl.  Ko.  1246. 

h2 


100  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

length  of  a  furrow :  now  220  (=  200  Saxon)  yards  is 
not  at  all  too  long  a  side  for  a  field  in  our  modern 
husbandry^,  and  is  still  more  readily  conceivable  in 
a  less  artificial  system,  where  there  was  altogether 
less  enclosure,  and  the  rotations  of  crops  were 
fewer.  Five  yards,  or  five  and  a  half,  is  not  too 
much  space  to  allow  for  the  turn  of  the  plough ; 
and  it  therefore  seems  not  improbable  that  such  an 
oblong  block  (200  X  5)  should  have  been  assumed 
as  a  settled  measure  or  furlong  for  the  ploughman, 
tvs^o  being  taken  alternately,  as  is  done  at  this  day, 
in  working,  and  forming  a  good  half-day's  work  for 
man  and  beast:  the  length  of  the  furrow,  by  which 
the  labour  of  the  ploughman  is  greatly  reduced, 
being  taken  to  compensate  for  the  improved  cha- 
racter of  our  implements. 

I  think  it  extremely  probable  that  the  Saxons 
had  a  large  and  a  small  acre,  as  well  as  a  large  and 
small  hundred,  and  a  large  and  small  yard:  and 
also  that  the  quarantena  or  rood  was  this  small 
acre.  Taking  forty  quarantenae  we  have  a  sum  of 
ten  large  acres,  and  taking  three  times  that  num- 
ber we  have  120  quarantenae,  or  a  large  hundred  of 
small  acres  =30  large  acres,  giving  ten  to  each 
course  of  a  threefold  system  of  husbandry.  This 
on  the  whole  seems  a  near  approximation  to  the 
value  of  the  Hide  of  land ;  and  the  calculation  of 
small  acres  would  then  help  to  account  for  the 

^  A  square  of  220  yards  would  form  a  field  of  ten  acres,  which  is  not 
at  all  oversized.  Since  the  happy  downfall  of  the  corn-laws,  which  were 
a  bonus  upon  bad  husbandry,  hedges  are  being  rooted  up  in  every  quar- 
ter, and  forty  or  fifty  acres  may  now  be  seen  in  single  fields,  where  they 
were  not  thought  of  a  few  years  ago. 


CH.  rr.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OE  AJLOD.  101 

number  of  120  which  is  assigned  to  the  Hide  by 
some  authorities  ^. 

In  the  appendix  to  this  chapter  I  have  given 
various  calculations  to  prove  that  in  Domesday 
the  value  of  a  Hide  is  forty  Xorman  acres.  It  has 
been  asserted  that  100  Saxon  =  120  Xorman  acres, 
and  if  so  40  Norman  =:33|^  Saxon:  which  does  not 
differ  very  widely  from  the  calculation  given  above. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  Hide  com- 
prised only  arable  land:  the  meadow  and  pasture 
was  in  the  common  lands  and  forests,  and  was 
attached  to  the  Hide  as  of  common  right:  under 
these  circumstances  if  the  calculation  of  thirty, 
thirty-two  or  thu-ty-three  acres  be  cori'ect,  we  shall 
see  that  ample  provision  was  made  for  the  family  2. 

Let  us  now  apply  these  data  to  places  of  which 
we  know  the  hidage.  and  compare  this  with  the 
modem  contents  in  statute-acres. 

According  to  Beda^  the  Isle  of  "Wight  contained 
1200  hides  or  families :  now  the  island  contains 
86,810  acres,  which  would  give  72^  acres  per  hide. 
But  only  75,000  acres  are  under  cultivation  now. 
and  this  would  reduce  our  quotient  to  62-5  acres. 
On  the  hypothesis  that  in  such  a  spot  as  the  Isle 


'   See  EUis,  Introd.  to  Domesday. 

"  The  numbers  given  are  assumed,  upon  the  supposition  that  3x40 
were  taken :  or  that  4  x  S,  that  is  four  Tirgates  of  eight  acres ;  or  lastly 
that  thu-ty-three  Saxon  =  nearly  forty  Konnan  were  taken.  As  I  am 
ahout  to  test  the  actual  acreage  of  England  by  these  numbers,  it  is  as 
well  to  try  them  all.  The  practical  result  cannot  vary  much,  and  the 
principal  object  is  to  show  that  the  Saxon  Hide  was  not  very  different 
from  the  ordinary  German  land-di^dsions. 

'  Hist.  Eccl.  iv.  16. 


102  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  Wight  (in  great  portions  of  which  vegetation  is 
not  abundant)  our  Saxon  forefathers  had  half  as 
much  under  cultivation  as  we  now  have,  we  should 
obtain  a  quotient  of  about  thirty-one  acres  to  the 
hide,  leaving  49,610  acres  of  pasture,  waste,  etc.:  the 
ratio  between  the  cultivated  and  uncultivated  land, 
being  about  37:49,  is  much  too  near  equality  for 
the  general  ratio  of  England,  hut  may  be  accounted 
for  by  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  the  island. 

Again,  Beda  estimates  Thanet  at  600  hides i. 
Now  Thanet,  at  this  day,  contains  23,000  acres  of 
arable  land,  and  3500  of  marsh  and  pastures.  The 
latter  must  have  been  far  more  extensive  in  the 
time  of  Beda,  for  in  the  first  place  there  must  have 
been  some  land  on  the  side  of  Surrey  and  Sussex 
reserved  as  Mark,  and  we  know  that  drainage  and 
natural  causes  have  reclaimed  considerable  tracts 
in  that  part  of  Kent  ^  ;  nor  is  it  reasonable  to  sup- 
pose that  our  forefathers  ploughed  up  as  much 
land  as  we  do.  Yet  even  23,000  acres  will  give  us 
only  38^  acres  to  the  hide ;  and  I  do  not  think  we 
shall  be  venturing  too  much  in  placing  the  3200, 
3800  or  5000  acres  by  which  23,000  respectively 
exceed  19,800,  19,200  and  18,000,  to  the  account 
of  pastures  and  commons.  Seven  or  eight  thou- 
sand acres  of  common  land  would  bear  in  fact  so 
unusually  small  a  proportion  to  the  quantity  under 
crop,  that  we  should  be  disposed  to  suspect  the 
islanders  of  having  been  less  wealthy  than  many 

1  Hist.  Eccl.  i.  25. 

^  The  river  Wantsum  alone  was  three  stadia  wide,  about  a  third  of  a 
jnUe,  and  was'passable  at  two  points  only.  Bed.  Hist.  Eccl.  i.  25. 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  103 

of  their  neighbours,  unless  we  give  them  credit 
for  having  sacrificed  bread  crops  to  the  far  more 
remunerative  pasturage  of  cattle  ^. 

The  whole  acreage  of  Kent  is  972,240  acres. 
What  amount  of  this  must  be  deducted  for  waste, 
rivers,  roads  and  towns  I  cannot  say,  but  some  de- 
duction is  necessary.  Now  Kent  numbered  15,000 
hides:  this  gives  a  quotient  of  64  to  65  acres  per 
hide ;  and  at  the  least,  one  half  of  this  may  fairly 
be  taken  off  for  marsh,  pasture  and  the  weald  of 
Andred. 

The  calculation  for  Sussex  is  rendered  uncertain 
in  some  measure,  through  our  ignorance  of  the  rela- 
tive proportion  borne  by  the  weald  in  the  seventh 
century  or  earlier,  to  its  present  extent.  The  whole 
county  is  computed  at  907,920  acres,  and  the  weald 
at  425,000  acres.  We  may  be  assured  that  every 
foot  of  the  weald  was  forest  in  the  time  of  Beda : 
to  this  must  be  added  110,000  acres  which  are 
still  waste  and  totally  unfit  for  the  plough :  30,000 
acres  now  computed  to  be  occupied  by  roads,  build- 
ings, etc.  may  be  neglected :  our  amount  will  there- 
fore state  itself  thus : 

Whole  acreage 907,920 

Wealdand  waste 535,000 


372,920  acres. 

'  The  great  fertility  of  Thanet  is  noticed  by  the  ancients.  Solinus 
(cap.  xxii.)  calls  it "  frumentariis  campis  felix  et  gleba  uberi."  But  com 
is  of  no  value  without  a  market;  and  unless  London  or  the  adjacent 
parts  of  the  continent  supplied  one,  I  must  still  imagine  that  the 
islanders  did  not  keep  so  great  an  amount  in  arable.  It  is  true  that  at 
very  early  periods  a  good  deal  of  com  was  habitually  exported  from 
Britaia :  "  annona  a  Britannis  sueta  transferri."  Ammian.  Hist,  xviii.  2. 


104  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Now  Sussex  contained  7000  hides^,  and  this  will 
give  us  a  quotient  of  53-25  acres  per  hide.  Here 
again,  if  we  make  allowance  for  the  condition  of 
Saxon  husbandry,  we  shall  hardly  err  much  in  as- 
suming something  near  thirty  to  thirty-three  acres 
to  have  been  the  arable  hide  in  Sussex. 

When  once  we  leave  the  accurate  reports  of  a 
historian  like  Beda  for  the  evidence  of  later  ma- 
nuscripts, we  must  necessarily  proceed  with  great 
caution,  and  in  reasonable  distrust  of  our  conclu- 
sions. This  must  be  borne  in  mind  and  fairly  ap- 
preciated throughout  the  following  calculations. 

An  authority  already  mentioned  ^  computes  the 
number  of  hides  in  Eastanglia  at  30,000.  It  is 
difficult  to  determine  exactly  what  counties  are 
meant  by  this,  as  we  do  not  know  the  date  of  the 
document;  but  supposing,  what  is  most  probable, 
that  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  are  intended,  we  should 
have  a  total  of  2,241,060  acres  in  those  two  great 
farming  districts^.  But  even  this  large  amount 
will  only  give  us  a  quotient  of  73'7  acres  per  hide, 
and  it  may  fairly  be  diminished  by  at  least  one 
half,  to  account  for  commons,  marshes,  forests  and 
other  land  not  brought  under  the  plough  from  the 
seventh  to  the  tenth  centuries. 

The  same  table  states  Essex  at  7000  hides.  The 
acreage  of  that  county  is  979,000  acres*,  hence 

1  Beda,  Hist.  Eccl.  iv.  13.  '  See  Chap.  III.  p.  82. 

"  Norf.  1,292,300,  Suff.  918,760,  =2,241,0G0.  Of  these  I  belieye 
only  about  2,000,000  are  actually  under  cultivation,  which  would  re- 
duce the  quotient  to  sixty-three  acres  and  two-thirds  per  hide. 

*  Of  which  only  900,000  are  computed  to  be  now  under  cultivation : 
this  reduces  the  quotient  to  128'5  acres  per  hide ;  and  the  ratio  of  cid- 


cH.nv.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  105 

upon  the  whole  calculation  we  shall  have  139f  acres 
per  hide.  But  of  course  here  a  very  great  deduc- 
tion is  to  be  made  for  Epping,  Hainault  and  other 
forests,  and  for  marshy  and  undrained  land. 

I  shall  now  proceed  to  reverse  the  order  of  pro- 
ceeding which  has  hitherto  been  adopted,  and  to 
show  that  the  hypothesis  of  the  hide  having  com- 
prised from  thirty  to  thirty -three  acres  is  the  only 
one  which  will  answer  the  conditions  found  in  va- 
rious grants :  that  in  a  number  of  cases  from  very 
different  parts  of  England,  a  larger  number  of  acres 
would  either  be  impossible  or  most  improbable  : 
that  it  is  entirely  impossible  for  the  hide  to  have 
reached  120  or  even  100  acres,  and  that  the  amount 
left  after  deducting  the  arable,  to  form  pastures 
and  meadows,  is  by  no  means  extravagant.  The 
examples  are  taken  from  different  charters  printed 
in  the  Codex  Diplomaticus  vEvi  Saxonici,  and  for 
convenience  of  reference  are  arranged  tabularly. 
The  comparison  is  made  with  the  known  acreage, 
taken  from  the.  Parliamentary  return  of  18411. 
The  table  is  constructed  upon  the  following  plan. 
The  first  column  contains  the  name  of  the  place; 
the  second,  the  number  of  hides;  the  third,  the 
actual  acreage ;  the  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh,  and 
eighth,  the  hides   calculated  at  thirty,  thirty-two, 

tivated  to  uncultivated  laud  is  as  7 :  23,  taking  the  hide  at  30  acres ; 
and  as  77  :  223  taking  the  hide  at  33  acres. 

'■  Enumeration  Ahstract,  etc.,  1841.  I  have  also  used  the  tables 
found  in  Mr.  Porter's  Progress  of  the  Nation ;  in  these  however,  the 
total  acreage,  calculated  apparently  upon  the  square  miles,  differs 
slightly  from  the  results  of  the  Government  inquiry,  Mr.  Porter's 
numbers  always  exceeding  those  of  the  Blve-hook. 


108 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


[book  I. 


thirty-three,  forty  and  one  hundred  acres  respect- 
ively ;  the  ninth,  tenth,  eleventh  and  tvpelfth,  the 
excess  of  real  over  supposed  acreage,  at  the  first  four 
amounts;  the  thirteenth,  the  excess  of  hidage  over 
real  acreage  on  the  hypothesis  of  one  hundred  acres 


Name. 


No.  of 
hidoB. 


Actual 
acreage. 


Acreage  Acreagi 
at  au.      at  :j2. 


Acri-nge  Acrt'iifro 
at :);(.      at  -10, 


Trottersoliff  Kent. 

Dailesford  Kent. 

Sunningwell  Berks. 

Denchworth  Berks. 

GraTeney  Jvciil. 

Marcham   Berks. 

/Kington Wilts. 

\Kington Wilts. 

Petersham Surrey 

Brokenborough. .  .Wilts. 

f  Alresf'ord   Hants. 

\Alresford    Hants. 

Whitchurch  Hants. 

Beddington    Surrey. 

{Compton    Dorset. 
Oompton    Dorset. 

Sanderstead  Surrey. 

fOlapham    Surrey. 

[  Clapham    Surrey. 

Micheldeyer  Hants. 

Wrington  Soiners. 

Barrow  on  Humb.  Line. 

Chertsey     Surrey. 

Sutton    Surrey. 

Aldingbourn  Sussex. 

Ferring  Sussex. 

Denton  Sussex. 

Bradfleld    Berks. 

Aston Burks. 

Charing Kent. 

King's  Worthy  ...Hants. 

Hurstbome  Prior.Hants. 

Newnton    Wilts. 

Garford Berks. 

Mordon Surrey. 

Blewbury   Berks. 

Sotwell    Berks. 

Goosey    Berks. 

f  Hanney,  East    ...Berks. 
[Hanney,  West  ...Berks. 

Badgwortb Somers. 

Drayton Berks. 

Barton    Berks. 


12 
l> 
15 
30 
•A2 
50 
40 
40 
10 
50 
40 
40 
110 
70 
40 
40 

•■a 

30 

30 

100 

20 

fiO 
200 
30 
■.iH 
12 
26 
48 
55 
(iO 

yii 

00 
10 
15 
20 
100 
15 
10 
20 
20 
25 
20 
40 


11,50 
540 
1200 
2800 
1920 
4!I40 
2;i20 
y'.LjO 

(ii;o 

2'.)M 
1250 
3060 
7330 

.•jh:)o 

l.'i'.KJ 
1.520 
22.^0 
1(170 
11)20 
!.).')40 
1530 
4(;20 
10(120 
18,30 
3800 
1(170 

WIO 
4270 
20;  id 
40BO 
2190 
3070 

810 
1170 
1700 
(-950 
1,310 

850 

000 
1390 
1470 
1050 
3590 


300 

180 

450 

900 

!)(•.() 

1500 

1200 

1200 

300 

1500 

1200 

I'-'OO 

3300 

2100 

1200 

1200 

OCiO 

'.KM  I 

900 
3000 

00(1 
1500 

0000 

!)00 

114(1 

360 

750 

1440 

1050 

1800 

900 

1800 

300 

450 

000 

3000 

450 

.300 

000 

000 

7.50 

000 

1200 


384 
]',)2 
4  HO 

!)(;() 

1((24 

1000 

1280 

1280 

320 

1000 

J2K0 

12S0 

3520 

2240 

1280 

1280 

1024 

900 

900 

3200 

(540 

1600 

6400 

9(i0 

1216 

384 

800 

1536 

1700 

l'.)20 

900 

1 920 

,320 

480 

640 

3200 

480 

320 

040 

040 

800 

040 

1280 


396 

I'.W 

4115 

1)110 

10,'"]0 

1(>5() 

1.320 

1,320 

.3,30 

lono 

1,320 

1,320 

3030 

2310 

1320 

1320 

l()5(i 

990 

990 

3300 

0(i() 

1(150 

liOOO 

1)1)0 

1254 

396 

825 

1,584 ' 

1815 

IDHO 

91)0 

1980 

330 

495 

000 

3,300 

495 

3,30 

000 

000 

825 

0(10 

1.320 


480 

240 

600 

1200 

1280 

2()()0 

1(100 

1000 

400 

2()()() 

1(100 

1000 

4400 

2800 

1600 

1000 

1280 

1200 

1200 

4000 

800 

2000 

HOOO 

1200 

1.520 

4H0 

1000 

11)20 

2200 

2400 

1200 

2400 

400 

600 

800 

4(J0O 

600 

400 

800 

800 

1000 

800 

1000 


CH.  rv.] 


THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD. 


107 


per  hide;  the  fourteenth,  fifteenth,  sixteenth  and 
seventeenth,  the  ratios  of  hidage  at  thirty,  thirty- 
two,  thirty-three  and  forty,  to  the  excess,  from 
which  we  deduce  the  proportion  between  the  arable, 
and  the  meadow,  pasture  and  waste.     In  a  few  in- 


icesa 
t33. 

Excess 
at  33, 

Excess 
at  40. 

Excess 
at  100. 

Bat.  at  30. 

Eat.  at  82. 

Eat.  at  S3. 

Eat.  at  40. 

776 

7.54 

670 

-50 

36:79 

38  :77 

39  :  75 

4.8    67 

348 

342 

300 

-60 

1  :2 

15  :  29 

10:  19 

4:5 

720 

7U5 

600 

-800 

3;5 

5:8 

30  :  47 

1  :  1 

1840 

ISIO 

1600 

-200 

9:19 

12:23 

96  :  ISl 

3:4 

89li 

8(>4 

(UO 

-X280 

1     1 

8:7 

11     9 

2:  1 

J340 

3290 

2041 1 

-60 

75  :  172 

80  :  167 

165  :  329 

100  :  147 

LOiO 

1000 

720 

—  liiSO 

15:  14 

65  :  52 

67  :  50 

20:9 

2(170 

2(>3l) 

23.50 

-50 

24  :  55 

130  :  267 

134  :  263 

32:47 

340 

330 

260 

-a40 

5:6 

16:  17 

1  :  1 

20:  13 

13S0 

1300 

950 

-2050 

30:29 

32  :  27 

33:26 

40:19 

-30 

-70 

-350 

-2750 

24:1 

128:  5 

132  :  5 

0 

!380 

2340 

20110 

-340 

20  :  41 

64  :  119 

66  :  117 

80  :  103 

J810 

3700 

2930 

-3670 

330  :  403 

352  :  381 

363 :  370 

440 ;  293 

590 

1520 

1030 

-3170 

210  :  173 

224  :  169 

231  :  152 

280  :  103 

110 

70 

-210 

-2610 

120  ;  19 

128  :  11 

132  :  7 

0 

240 

200 

-80 

-2480 

15:4 

16:3 

33:  5 

0 

126 

1094 

970 

-950 

32:43 

512  :  563 

52S  :  547 

12S  :  97 

110 

80 

-130 

-1930 

90:  17 

96  :  11  ■ 

99:8 

0 

960 

930 

720 

-1080 

45  :  51 

1  :1 

33:31 

15:9 

)140 

6040 

5340 

-6(10 

150  :  317 

160  :  307 

165    302 

2ilO  :  267 

890 

87U 

730 

-470 

20  :  31 

64  :  89 

66:87 

80:73 

!020 

2970 

2620 

-740 

25  :  52 

80  :  151 

55  :  99 

100  :  131 

i620 

3120 

2020 

—  9'JSO 

300  :  201 

320  :  181 

330  :  171 

400  :  101 

870 

840 

630 

-1170 

30:31 

32:29 

33:28 

120  :  63 

864 

1826 

2280 

0 

57  :  190 

304  :  485 

627  :  913 

38:57 

686 

674 

590 

-130 

36:71 

192  :  343 

198  :  337 

48:59 

90 

65 

-110 

-1610 

75  :  14 

80  :  9 

165  :  13 

0 

!734 

2686 

2350 

-.530 

144  :  283 

768  :  1367 

7i)2  :  1343 

192  :  235 

270 

215 

-170 

-3470 

165  :  38 

170:27 

366  :  43 

0 

!140 

2080 

1660 

-1940 

90    113 

96  :  107 

99  :  104 

120  :  83 

230 

1200 

990 

-810 

30:43 

32:41 

33  :  40 

40  ;  33 

150 

1090 

670 

-2930 

180  ;  127 

192  :  115 

IDS  :  109 

240:67 

490 

480 

410 

-190 

30:51 

32:49 

33:48 

40:41 

690 

675 

570 

-330 

45:72 

48  ;  69 

49  :  67 

60  :  57 

060 

1040 

900 

-300 

6  :  11 

32  :  53 

33  :  52 

8:9 

750 

3650 

2950 

-2050 

60:79 

64  :  75 

66  :  73 

80:59 

830 

815 

710 

-190 

45  :  SO 

4S:  83 

93  :  163 

60:71 

530 

620 

450 

-150 

6:11 

32:53 

33:  52 

8;9 

-40 

-60 

-200 

-1400 

0 

0 

0 

0 

750 

730 

590 

-610 

60 :  79 

64  :  75 

66  :  73 

80:59 

670 

645 

470 

-1030 

75:72 

80  :  67 

55  :  43 

100  :  47 

310 

1290 

1150 

-50 

4:9 

64  :  131 

22:43 

80  :  115 

310 

2270 

990 

-410 

120  :  239 

128  :  231 

132  :  227 

160  :  99 

108  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i 

stances,  there  is  a  double  return,  implying  that  it  is 
uncertain  to  which,  of  two  synonymous  districts, 
a  grant  must  be  referred. 

We  have  thus  forty-nine  cases  in  which  the 
Hide  is  proved  less  than  100  acres,  a  fortiori  less 
than  120.  Any  one  who  carefully  considers  the 
ratios  arrived  at  in  the  foregoing  table,  which  for 
any  one  of  the  assumed  cases  rarely  exceed  one  to 
two,  will  agree  that  there  is  a  remarkable  coinci- 
dence in  the  results,  in  at  least  the  rich,  fertile  and 
cultivated  counties  from  which  the  examples  are 
derived.  In  some  cases  indeed  the  proportion  of 
arable  to  waste  is  so  great,  that  we  must  suppose 
other  districts,  now  under  cultivation,  to  have  been 
then  entirely  untouched,  in  order  to  conceive  suflB- 
cient  space  for  marks  and  pastures.  But  lest  it 
should  be  objected  that  these  examples  can  teach 
us  only  what  was  the  case  in  fertile  districts,  I  sub- 
join a  calculation  of  the  Hidage  and  Acreage  of 
all  England,  including  all  its  barren  moors,  its  fo- 
rests, its  marshes  and  its  meadows,  from  the  Solent 
to  the  utmost  limit  of  Northumberland. 

The  total  Hidage  of  England  =      243,600 
The  total  Acreage  of  England =31 ,770,615  st.  a. 

Acreage  at  30      7,308,000    Excess  24,462,615    Rat.  7 :  24  nearly. 
32      7,795,200  .  .     23,975,415      . .     1:3 

8:23 
3:8 
24:7 
14:1 

This  calculation  leaves  no  doubt  a  bare  possibility 
of  the  hide's  containing  100  or  120  statute-acres: 


33 

8,038,800 

.  23,731,815 

40 

9,744,000 

.  22,026,615 

100 

24,360,000 

.   7,410,615 

120 

29,232,000 

.   2,538,615 

CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  109 

but  those  who  are  inclined  to  believe  that,  taking 
all  England  through,  the  proportion  of  cultivated  to 
uncultivated  land  was  as  29:  3,  or  even  as  24:7,  it 
must  be  owned,  appreciate  our  ancient  husbandry 
beyond  its  merits  ^     Cultivation  may  very  proba- 
bly have  increased   with  great  rapidity  up  to  the 
commencement  of  the  ninth  century ;  and  in  that 
case,  waste  land  would  have  been  brought  under 
the  plough  to  meet  the  demands  of  increasing  po- 
pulation :  but  the  savage  inroads  of  the  Northmen 
which  filled  the  next  succeeding  century  must  have 
had  a  strong  tendency  in  the  opposite  direction.    I 
can  hardly  believe  that  a  third  of  all  England  was 
vmder  cultivation  at  the  time  of  the  conquest ;  yet 
this  is  the  result  which  we  obtain  from  a  calcula- 
tion of  thirty-two  or  thirty-three  acres  to  the  hide, 
while  a  calculation  of  forty  acres  gives  us  a  result 
of  three-eighths,  or  very  little  less  than  one-half. 
The  extraordinary  character  of  this  result  will  best 
appear  from  the  following  considerations. 

If  we  proceed  to  apply  these  calculations  to  the 
existing  condition  of  England,  we  shall  be  still  more 
clearly  satisfied  that  from  thirty  to  thirty-three  acres 
is  at  any  rate  a  near  approximation  to  the  truth. 

'  I  have  taken  tlie  acreage  as  given  in  the  Census  of  1841,  but  there 
is  another  calculation  which  makes  it  amount  to  32,342,400 ;  in  which 
case  the  several  values  must  he  corrected  as  follows.  The  general  re- 
sult is  not  in  the  least  altered  hy  this  change  in  the  factors. 

Acreage  at  30      7,308,000     Excess  25,034,400     Eat.  7 :  25 

24,547,200      .  .     7 :  24 
24,303,600      . .     1:3 


32  7,795,200 

33  8,038,800 
40  9,744,000 

100  24,360,000 

120  29,232,000 


22,598,400   ..  9:22 
7,982,400   ..  24:7 
3,110,400   ..  29:3 


110 


THE  S.\XONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


[book  I. 


The  exact  data  for  England  are  I  believe  not  found, 
but  in  1827  Mr.  Couling,  a  civil  engineer  and  sur- 
veyor, delivered  a  series  of  calculations  to  the  Select 
Committee  of  the  House  of  Commons  on  Emigra- 
tion, which  calculations  have  been  reproduced  by 
Mr.  'Porter  in  his  work  on  the  Progress  of  the 
Nation.     From  this  I  copy  the  following  table: 


Arable  and 
garden. 

Meadow, 
pasture,  marsh. 

Waste  capable 

of 
improvement. 

Waste  incapable 

of 

improvement. 

Summary. 

Statute  acrea. 
10,252,800 

Statute  acrea. 

15,379,200 

Statute  aorea. 
3,454,000 

Statute  acres. 

3,256,400 

Statute  aores. 
32,342,400 

Now  as  the  arable  and  gardens  are  all  that  can 
possibly  be  reckoned  to  the  hide,  we  have  these 


figures : 


Arable 10,252,800 

Meadow,  waste,  forest,  etc 22,089,600 

giving  a  ratio  of  5 :  11  nearly  between  the  cultivated 
and  uncultivated  1. 

The  actual  amount  in  France  is  difiicult  to  ascer- 
tain, but  of  the  52,732,428  hectares  of  which  its 
superficial  extent  consists,  it  is  probable  that  about 
30,000,000  are  under  some  sort  of  profitable  cul- 
ture: giving  a  ratio  of  rather  less  than  15:11  be- 
tween the  cultivated  and  uncultivated:  how  much 
of  this  is  arable  and  garden  I  cannot  exactly  deter- 
mine ;  but  it  is  probable  that  a  great  deal  is  reck- 
oned to  profitable  cultivation,  which  could  not  have 

1  This  differs  from  the  result  obtained  at  forty  acres,  only  by  the 
small  advance  of  -^-g :  or  taking  Mr.  Porter's  tables,  of  -^. 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  Ill 

been  counted  in  the  hide.  Osieries,  meadows,  or- 
chards, cultivated  or  artificial  grassland,  and  brush- 
wood, are  all  sources  of  profit,  and  thus  are  pro- 
perly included  in  a  cadastre  of  property  which  may 
be  tithed  or  taxed  as  productive:  but  they  are  not 
strictly  what  the  hide  was,  and  must  be  deducted 
in  any  calculation  such  as  that  which  is  the  object 
of  this  chapter.  We  are  unfortunately  also  fur- 
nished with  inconsistent  amounts  by  different  au- 
thorities, where  the  difi'erence  rests  upon  what  is 
reckoned  to  profitable  cultivation,  on  which  subject 
there  may  be  a  great  variety  of  opinion.  Still,  for 
a  time  neglecting  these  considerations,  and  making 
no  deduction  whatever,  it  appears  that  the  excess 
of  culture  upon  the  gross  sum  is  only  as  15:11  in 
France^. 

In  the  returns  from  Austria  we  can  follow  the 


'  The  hectare  is  about  2-5  acres.    The  calculations  have  been  va- 
riously made.     One  is  as  follows : 

Total  superficies  52,732,428  hect. 

Profitably  cultured,  including  gardens,  osier-  j 

ies,  willow  plantations,  orchards,  meadows  V  30,000,000  hect. 

and  cultivated  pastures  1 

Forests  and  landes 10,000,000     . . 

Useless  land 7,000,000     . . 

47,000,000     . . 
Another,  and  I  believe  sounder,  calculation  makes  the  forests  and 
landes  amount  to 

Forest 8,623,128  hect. 

Landes    8,000,000    . . 

16,623,128    .. 

Where,  probably,  portions  of  the  wood  and  lande  are  not  reckoned  to 
the  land  under  profitable  cultivation.  StiU  this  is  a  very  different  thing 
from  being  under  the  ■plough. 


112 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


[book  I. 


same  train  of  reasoning :  as  the  ensuing  table  will 
show. 


Provinces. 

Product.  Burf.  in  joehs.  (joch  =  1-4  acre). 

Arable. 

Vines. 

Meadows. 

Commons. 

Forests. 

Total. 

LowerAUBtria 
UiJperAustria 

1,399.910 
834,556 
709,147 
477,492 
245,738 
377,300 

3,889,979 

2,213,855 

5,770,388 
161,228 

80,153 
27 
54,875 
16,814 
26,132 
55,300 
4,446 

51,793 

30 
100,530 

447,758 
530,601 
456,960 
556,973 
171,252 
432,930 
948,468 

390,152 

2,068,032 

28,728 

251,347 
517,683 
596,341 
763,846 
520,866 
648,800 
611,501 

463,098 

1,360,166 
568,538 

1,122,285 
1,141,823 
1,773,564 
1,528,942 
317,246 
1,946,200 
2,316,298 

1,114,849 

4,250,932 
300,874 

3,301,453 
3,024,690 
3,590,887 
3,344,067 
1,281,234 
3,460,530 
7,770,692 

4,233,747 

13,449„548 
1,159,898 

Oarinthia  ... 

Illyria     

Tyrol 

Bohemia 

Moravia  & ' 
Silesia  . . .  / 

G-alicia    

Dalmatia    . . . 

Total    ... 

16,079,593 

390,100 

6,031,854 

6,302,186 

15,813,012 

44,616,746 

Thus  of  the  whole  productive  surface  of  the 
Austrian  empire,  the  arable  bears  only  the  propor- 
tion of  4: 11.  But  to  tliis  must  clearly  be  added 
an  immense  extent  of  land  totally  unfitted  for  the 
plough ;  by  which  the  ratio  of  arable  to  the  whole 
territorial  surface  will  be  materially  diminished. 
Strange  then  as  the  conclusion  may  appear,  we  are 
compelled  to  admit  that  England  at  the  close  of  the 
tenth  century  had  advanced  to  a  high  pitch  of  cul- 
tivation: while  the  impossiblity  of  reckoning  the 
hide  at  much  above  thirty  Saxon  acres  is  demon- 
strated. It  is  clear,  however  the  property  of  the 
land  may  have  been  distributed,  that  the  elements 
of  wealth  existed  in  no  common  degree^. 

'  It  is  well  known  that  great  quantities  of  land  were  thrown  out  of 
cultivation  to  produce  chases  and  forests.  And  the  constant  wars  of 
the  baronial  ages  must  have  had  the  same  effect.  However  singular  we 
may  think  it,  we  can  hardly  avoid  the  conclusion  that,  in  some  districts 
of  England,  the  Saxons  may  have  had  more  land  in  cultivation  than  we 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  113 

The  number  of  forty  acres  has  of  course  been 
taken  solely  for  the  purpose  of  getting  a  common 
measure  with  the  present  acre  assumed  in  the  parlia- 
mentary survey.  Whether  it  corresponded  exactly 
with  thirty,  thirty-two  or  thirty-three  Saxon  acres, 
it  is  impossible  to  say,  but  I  have  shown  that  the 
difference  could  not  be  very  great.  Something  may 
be  alleged  in  favour  of  each  of  these  numbers ;  but 
on  the  whole  the  larger  one  of  thirty-three  acres 
seems  to  me  the  most  probable.  A  valuable  entry 
of  the  year  967  may  help  us  to  some  clearer  con- 
clusioni.  In  this  document  Bishop  Oswald  states 
himself  to  have  made  a  grant  of  se6  Jjridde  hind 
at  Dydinccotan,  Sset  is,  se  J^ridde  secer, — the  third 
hind  at  Didcot,  that  is,  the  third  acre.  It  is  cer- 
tain that  at  some  very  early  period  the  word  hund 
denoted  ten,  whence  we  explain  its  occurrence  in 
such  numerals  as  hundseofontig,  hundeahtatig,  etc. 
The  word  hind  then,  I  derive  from  this  hund,  and 
render  by  tenth,  and  the  grant  seems  to  have  con- 
veyed the  third  tenth,  which  can  only  be  said  of  a 
quantity  containing  three  times  ten  units  of  some 
description  or  other.  But  this  third  tenth  is  fur- 
ther described  as  being  every  third  acre,  that  is,  a 
third  of  the  whole  land ;  and  ten  units  make  up 
this  third  :  it  seems  therefore  not  unreasonable  to 
suppose  that  the  acre  was  the  unit  in  question,  that 


ourselves  had  at  the  beginning  of  George  the  Third's  reign ;  Mr.  Por- 
ter calculates  that  from  1760  to  1844,  no  less  than  7,076,610  acres 
have  been  brought  into  cultivation  under  Inclosure  Bills.    Pr.  of  the 
Nation,  154. 
'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  538. 

VOL.  I.  I 


114  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

ten  such  acres  constituted  the  hind,  and  that  the 
hind  itself  was  the  third  part  of  the  hide.  When 
we  consider  that  thirty  acres  are  exactly  three 
times  an  area  of  40  X  40  square  rods,  there  appears 
a  probability  that  the  measure  was  calculated  upon 
a  threefold  course  of  cultivation,  similar  to  that  in 
use  upon  the  continent  of  Europe;  this  consisted 
of  a  rotation  of  winter  corn,  summer  corn,  and 
fallow,  and  to  each  a  block  or  telga  of  ten  large  or 
forty  small  acres  (roods)  was  allotted.  Thirty  acres 
were  thus  devoted  to  cultivation;  but  where  was 
the  homestall  1  Probably  not  upon  the  thirty  acres 
themselves,  which  we  cannot  suppose  to  have  been 
generally  enclosed  and  sundered,  but  to  have  lain 
undivided,  as  far  as  external  marks  were  concerned, 
in  the  general  arable  of  the  community.  The  village 
containing  the  homesteads  of  the  markers,  probably 
lay  at  a  little  distance  from  the  fields  i,  and  I  do 
not  think  we  shall  be  giving  too  much  when  we 
allow  three  acres,  over  and  above  the  thirty,  for 
farm  buildings,  strawyard  and  dwelling.  For  we 
cannot  doubt  that  stall-feeding  was  the  rule  with 
regard  to  horned  cattle  in  general.  In  the  same 
dialogue  which  has  been  already  cited,  the  plough- 
man is  made  to  say :    "  I  must  fill  the  oxen's  cribs 


^  "  In  the  greater  part  (of  Germany),  especially  in  all  the  populous 
parts  of  Southern  Germany,  the  land  is  tilled  by  its  owners,  scarcely 
any  small  holdings  heing  farmed  out.  The  possessions  of  the  peasant 
owners  and  cultivators  are  usually  very  diminutive,  and  those  of  the 
richer  lords  of  the  soil,  especially  in  the  North,  immensely  extensive. 
Lastly,  the  peasant  scarcely  anywhere  lives  upon  his  land,  hut  in  the 
adjacent  village,  whatever  may  he  its  distance  from  his  fields."  Ban- 
field,  Agric.  on  the  Rhine,  p.  10. 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  116 

with  hay,  and  give  them  water,  and  bear  out  their 
dung  ^."  Moreover  there  must  be  room  found  for 
stacks  of  hay  and  wood,  for  barns  and  outhouses, 
and  sleeping-rooms  both  for  the  serfs  and  the  mem- 
bers of  the  family ;  nor  are  houses  of  more  than 
one  story  very  likely  to  have  been  built  2.  With 
this  introduction  I  proceed  to  another  grant  of 
Oswald^.  In  the  year  996,  he  gave  three  hides  of 
land  to  Eadric  :  the  property  however  lay  in  diffe- 
rent places:  "get  Eanulfestune  oSerhealf  hid,  "]  set 
uferan  Strsetforda,  on  'Ssere  gesyndredan  hide,  'Sone 
oSeme  secer,  *J  set  Fachanleage  'Sone  J^riddan  secer 
feldlandes  ....  "j  on  easthealfe  Afene  eahta  seceras 
msedwa,'jforne  gean  Biccenclife.  xii.  seceras  msedwa, 
■]  l^reo  secras  benor^an  Afene  to  myllnstealle ;" 
i.  e.  "at  Eanulfestun  a  hide  and  a  half;  at  upper 
Stratford  the  second  acre  (i.  e.  half  a  hide);  at  Fach- 
anleah  the  third  acre  (i.  e.  a  third  of  a  hide)  ;  on 
the  east  of  the  river  Avon,  eight  acres  of  meadow, 
and  onwards  towards  Biccancliff,  twelve  acres ;  and 
to  the  northward  of  the  Avon,  the  three  acres  for 
a  millstall."  Our  data  here  are  1^  hide  +  ^  hide 
+f  hide,  or  2^  hides ;  but,  if  the  calculations  which 
precede  are  correct,  8  +  12  acres  or  20  acres  =  f 
hide,  and  thus  make  up  three  hides  of  thirty  acres 
each :  three  acres  devoted  to  mill-buildings  are  not 
reckoned  into  the  sum,  and  it  is  therefore  possi- 
ble that  a  similar  course  was  pursued  with  regard 


Leo,  Sprachproben,  p.  7.    Thorpe,  Analect.  p.  8. 
In  Hungary,  where  land  is  abundant,  houses,  even  those  of  con- 
siderable proprietors,  are  rarely  of  more  than  one  story. 
'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  529. 

i2 


116  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

to  the  land  occupied,  not  by  the  millstall  but  by 
the  homestalP. 

Having  thus  stated  my  own  view  of  the  approxi- 
mate value  of  the  hide,  I  feel  it  right  to  cite  one  or 
two  passages  which  seem  adverse  to  it.  By  a  grant 
of  the  year  977,  Oswald  conveyed  to  ^^elwald, 
two  hides,  all  but  sixty  acres  ;  these  sixty  acres  the 
bishop  had  taken  into  his  own  demesne  or  inland 
at  Kempsey,  as  wheat-land  ^.  Now  if  this  be  an  ac- 
curate reading,  and  not  by  chance  an  ill-copied  Ix 
for  ix,  it  would  seem  to  imply  that  sixty  acres  were 
less  than  a  hide ;  for  these  acres  were  clearly  arable. 

Again,  ^ESelred  granted  land  at  Stoke  to  Leofric 
in  982  :  the  estate  conveyed  was  of  three  hides  and 
thirty  acres,  called  in  one  chsLvter  Jugera,  in  another 
part  of  the  same  grant,  cecera  ^.  It  may  be  argued 
that  here  the  acres  were  meadow  or  pasture,  not 
included  in  the  arable.  But  there  are  other  calcula- 
tions upon  the  jugerum^,  which  render  it  probable 
that  less  than  our  statute-acre  was  intended  by  the 
term.     For  example,  in  839,  king  ^iE^elwulf  gave 

^  It  is  to  he  remarked  that  the  eight  and  twelve  acres  of  meadow 
are  distinguished  here  from  the  feld-land  or  arable  :  and  in  strictness 
they  ought  not  to  he  calculated  into  the  hide ;  hut  perhaps  it  was 
intended  to  plough  them  up  :  or  Oswald  may  even  have  begun  to 
follow  a  system  in  which  arable  and  meadow  should  both  be  included 
in  the  hide,  which  is  equivalent,  in  other  words,  to  the  attempt  to  re- 
place the  wasteful  method  of  unenclosed  pastures  by  a  more  civilized 
arrangement  of  the  land.  He  speaks  indeed,  on  more  than  one  occa- 
sion, of  granting  gedal-land,  and  land  to  gedale,  which  can  hardly 
mean  anything  but  neio  enclosures. 

^  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  612.  ^  Ibid.  No.  633. 

*  According  to  Hiny,  the  jugerum  was  a  day's  work  for  a  yoke  of 
oxen,  i.e.,nearly  an  acre ;  but  the  Saxon  jugerum  can  hardly  have  been 
so  large,  for  the  reasons  given  in  the  text. 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  117 

Dudda  ten  jugera  within  the  walls  of  Canterbury : 
now  Canterbury  at  this  day  comprises  only  3240 
acres,  and  taking  the  area  of  almost  any  provincial 
town,  it  seems  hardly  probable  that  ten  full  acres 
within  the  walls  should  have  been  granted  to  any 
person,  especially  to  one  who,  like  Dudda,  was  of 
no  very  great  consideration.  A  town-lot  of  two 
acres  and  a  half,  or  ten  roods,  is  conceivable. 

The  last  example  to  be  quoted  is  from  a  will  of 
iElfgar^,  a  king's  thane,  about  958.  In  this,  among 
other  legacies,  he  grants  to  .^^elgar  a  hide  of 
120  acres  :  "  and  ic  ^^elgar  an  an  hide  lond  ^es 
^e  iE'Sulf  hauede  be  hundtuelti  acren,  ateo  so  he 
wille."  In  this  instance  I  am  inclined  to  think  that 
the  special  description  implies  a  difference  from  the 
usual  computation  :  if  a  hide  were  always  120  acres, 
why  should  ^Ifgar  think  it  necessary  to  particu- 
larize this  one  hide  X  was  there  a  large  hide  of 
120,  as  well  as  a  small  one  of  thirty  I  In  the  other 
cases — looking  at  the  impossibility ,  of  assigning 
more  than  forty  statute-acres  to  the  Saxon  hide, 
so  plainly  demonstrated  by  the  tables — I  suppose 
the  secras  to  be  small  acres  or  roods. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  where  the 
number  of  hides  mentioned  in  any  place  falls  very 
far  short  of  the  actual  acreage,  no  argument  can 
be  derived  any  way.  The  utmost  it  proves  is  that 
only  a  certain  amount,  however  inconsiderable,  was 
under  the  plough.  Thus  Beda  tells  us  that  An- 
glesey contained  960,  lona  or  Icolmkill,  only  five, 

1  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1222. 


118  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

hides^.  The  acreage  of  Anglesey  gives  150,000 
acres  under  cultivation :  this  would  be  156"33  per 
hide ;  but  in  this  island  a  very  great  reduction  is 
necessary :  taking  it  even  as  it  stands,  and  calcu- 
lating the  hide  at  thirty  acres,  we  should  have  a 
ratio  of  24  :  101 ;  at  forty  acres,  a  ratio  of  32  :  93 
or  little  more  than  1:3. 

lona  numbers  about  1300  acres  (nearly  tvro  square 
miles) :  this  at  five  hides  would  give  260  acres  per 
hide :  at  thirty  acres,  a  ratio  of  3  :  23  or  nearly 
1 :  8  between  cultivated  and  uncultivated  land  :  or 
at  forty  acres,  a  ratio  of  2  :  11.  But  the  monks  and 
their  dependants  were  the  only  inhabitants ;  and  in 
the  time  of  Beda,  up  to  which  there  is  no  proof  of 
the  land's  having  been  inhabited  at  all  (in  fact  it 
was  selected  expressly  because  a  desert),  sand,  if 
not  forest,  must  have  occupied  a  large  proportion 
of  the  surface. 

Let  us  now  retrace  our  steps  for  a  few  moments. 
The  hide  was  calculated  upon  the  arable :  it  was 
the  measure  of  the  alod, — the  e^el,  or  inherited, 
individual  possession;  it  was  the  K\rjpoc,  lot,  or 
share  of  the  first  settler  :  it  kept  a  plough  at  work 
during  the  year:  and,  according  to  its  etymology 
(liigid)  and  the  word  familia  by  which  it  was  trans- 
lated, it  was  to  suffice  for  the  support  of  one  Hiwisc 
or  household. 

Did  it  really  so  suffice,  at  first  and  afterwards? 
Unquestionably  it  did.  We  may  safely  assert  this, 
without  entering  into  nice  speculations  as  to  the 

'  Hist.  Eccl.  ii.  9 ;  iii.  4. 


as.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  119 

amount  of  population  in  the  Saxon  kingdoms  of  the 
seventh,  eighth,  ninth,  or  even  eleventh  centuries. 
We  know  that  in  the  eighth  century,  150  hides  were 
enough  for  the  support  and  comfort  of  600  monks 
in  Yarrow  and  Wearmouth^;  there  is  no  reason, 
from  their  history,  to  suppose  that  they  were  at  all 
sparingly  provided  for.  But  allowance  must  be 
made  also  for  serfs  and  dependants,  the  exercise  of 
hospitality  and  charity,  the  occasional  purchase  of 
books,  vestments  and  decorations,  the  collection  of 
reliques,  and  the  maintenance  of  the  fabric  both  of 
the  church  and  monastery.  Grants  and  presents, 
offerings  and  foundations  would  do  much,  but  still 
some  portion  of  these  necessary  expenses  must  be 
carried  to  the  account  of  the  general  fund.  At  this 
rate  however,  one  hide  was  capable  of  maintaining 
four  full-grown  men. 

Now  even  at  the  present  day  an  industrious  man 
can  very  well  support  his  family  upon,  not  thirty 
or  forty,  but  ten  acres  of  average  land^.  If  we  look 
at  the  produce  of  such  a  threefold  course  as  has 
been  mentioned,  there  can  hardly  be  any  doubt 
upon  the  subject;  the  cultivator  would  have  every 
year  twenty  Saxon  (=26f  Norman)  acres  under 
some  kind  of  corn,  principally  barley  in  all  proba- 
bility, though  much  wheat  was  grown.  Assuming 
the  yield  at  only  two  quarters  per  acre,  which  is  an 

'  Anon.  Abb.  Gyrw.  §  83.  TMs  at  forty  actual  acres,  is  ten  acres 
per  man. 

^  We  need  not  enter  upon  the  question  whether  such  a  plot  of  land 
can  be  well  cultivated  (except  as  a  garden),  or  whether  it  is  desirable 
that  there  should  be  such  a  class  of  cultivators.  All  I  assert  is,  that  a 
man  can  support  his  family  upon  it. 


120  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

almost  ludicrous  understatement  of  the  probable 
amount^,  we  give  each  householder  forty  quarters 
of  cereals,  at  the  very  lovpest,  and  deducting  his 
seed-corn  and  the  public  taxes,  we  still  leave  him  a 
very  large  amount.  The  average  annual  consump- 
tion of  wheat  per  head  in  England  is  now  computed 
at  one  quarter :  let  us  add  one  half  to  compensate 
for  the  less  nutritious  qualities  of  barley,  and  we 
shall  yet  be  under  the  mark  if  we  allow  our  house- 
holder at  the  close  of  the  year,  a  net  receipt  of  thirty 
quarters,  or  food  for  at  least  twenty  persons.  Add 
to  this  the  cattle,  and  especially  swine  fed  in  the 
forests, — which  paid  well  for  their  own  keep,  and 
gave  a  net  surplus — and  the  ceorl  or  owner  of  one 
hide  of  land,  independently  of  his  political  rights, 
becomes  a  person  of  some  consideration  from  his 
property  ^ :  in  short  he  is  fully  able  to  maintain 
himself,  his  wife  and  child,  the  ox  that  ploughs, 
and  the  slave  that  tends  his  land, — owning  much 
more  indeed,  than,  in  Hesiod's  eyes,  would  have 
sufficed  for  these  purposes  ^.     It  may  be  admitted 

'  The  fertility  of  England  was  always  celebrated,  and  under  the 
Romans  it  exported  cereals  largely.  See  Gibbon's  calculation  of  an 
export  under  Julian.  Dec.  F.  cap.  xix.  Our  present  average  yield  of 
wheat  exceeds  30  bushels  or  .3-75  qrs. 

^  If  he  had  a  market  for  his  surplus,  he  might  accumulate  wealth. 
Even  if  he  had  not  this,  he  insured  a  comfortable,  though  rude  subsist- 
ence, for  his  household.  The  spiw  to  exertion,  urging  him  to  acquire 
luxuries,  might  be  wanting,  and  the  national  advancement  in  refine- 
ment thus  retarded  :  but  he  had  a  sufficiency  of  the  necessaries  of  life, 
and  an  independent  existence  in  the  body  of  the  family  and  the  Mark. 
Such  a  state  necessarily  precedes  the  more  cultivated  stages  of  society. 

'  OLKOV  fiiv  vpaiTKTTa,  yvvaiKa  re,  fiovv  r  dpoTrjpa. 

Cited  in  Aristot.  Polit.  bk.  i.  cap.  1. 
The  land  of  a  fuUborn  Spartan  may  have  been  somewhat  less  than  the 


CH.  IV.]  THE  EDEL,  HI'D  OR  ALOD.  121 

that  the  skies  of  Greece  and  Italy  showered  kind- 
lier rays  upon  the  Ionian  or  the  Latin  than  visited 
the  rough  denizen  of  our  Thule ;  that  less  food  of 
any  kind,  and  especially  less  meat,  was  required  for 
their  support^,  and  that  they  felt  no  necessity  to 
withdraw  large  amounts  of  barley  from  the  annual 
yield,  for  the  purpose  of  producing  fermented 
liquors  ^ ;  still,  as  far  as  the  amount  of  land  is  con- 
cerned, the  advantage  is  incontestably  on  the  side 
of  the  Anglosaxon;  and  in  this  one  element  of 
wealth,  our  ceorl  was  comparatively  richer  than  the 
comrade  of  Eomulus  or  the  worshipper  of  Athene. 

Saxon  hide :  but  let  ttose  who  think  these  amounts  too  small,  remem- 
ber the  two  jugera  (under  two  acres)  which  formed  the  haeredium  of 
a  Roman  patrician. 

'  Hecataeus  says  the  Arcadians  fed  upon  barley-bread  and  pork, 
'ApKabiKov  fie  delirvov.  .  .  .'EKaratos.  .  .  .fid^as  (pr}f7lv  elvai  Ka\  veia  Kpea, 
Athen.  iv.  148.  But  the  Arcadians,  both  in  blood  and  manners,  pro- 
bably resembled  the  Saxons  more  than  any  other  Greeks  did ;  and  what 
Hecataeus  says  of  them  would  not  apply  to  the  inhabitants  of  Attica. 

'  After  the  Persian  wars  at  least,  when  the  Greeks  prided  themselves 
on  drinking  wine,  not  beer : 

aXX*  ap<r€vds  rot  T^(rSe  y^s  oiKTjTopas 
fvpT}(reT)  oil  Tvivovras  iK  Kpt6cov  jx46v. 

Msck.  Supp.  929. 


122 


CHAPTER  V. 

PERSONA_L  RA.NK.    THE  FREEMAN.    THE  NOBLE. 

The  second  principle  laid  down  in  the  first  chapter 
of  this  book,  is  that  of  personal  rank,  vs'hich  in  the 
Teutonic  scheme  appears  inseparably  connected 
with  the  possession  of  land. 

The  earliest  records  we  can  refer  to,  place  before 
us  a  system  founded  upon  distinctions  of  birth,  as 
clearly  as  any  that  we  can  derive  from  the  Parlia- 
mentary writs  or  rolls  of  later  ages :  in  our  histpry 
there  is  not  even  a  fabulous  Arcadia,  wherein  we 
may  settle  a  free  democracy :  for  even  where  the 
records  of  fact  no  longer  supply  a  clue  through  the 
labyrinths  of  our  early  story,  the  epic  continues  the 
tradition,  and  still  celebrates  the  deeds  of  nobles 
and  of  kings. 

Tacitus,  from  whom  we  derive  our  earliest  infor- 
mation, supplies  us  with  many  details,  which  not 
only  show  the  existence  of  a  system,  but  tend  also 
to  prove  its  long  prevalence.  He  tells  us  not  only 
of  nobles,  but  also  of  kings,  princes  and  inherited 
authority  1,  more  or  less  fully  developed:  and  the 

'  The  Oherusci  feeling  the  want  of  a  king  sent  to  Rome  for  a  de- 
scendant of  Arminius.  Tac.  An.  xi.  17.  The  Heruli  Ln  Illyria  having 
slain  their  king,  sent  to  their  brethren  in  Thule  (Scandinavia)  for  a 
descendant  of  the  blood  royal.  During  his  journey  however  they  ac- 
cepted another  king  from  the  hands  of  Justinian.  This  person  and 
their  alliance  with  the  emperor  they  renounced  upon  the  arrival  of  the 


CH.  v.]  THE  FREEMAN.    TPIE  NOBLE.  123 

unbiassed  judgment  of  the  statesman  who  witnessed 
the  operation   of  institutions  strange  to  himself, 
warns  us  against  theoretical  appeals  to  the  fancied 
customs   of  ages  not    contemporaneous  with    our 
own.     The  history  of  Europe  knows  nothing  of  a 
period  in  which  there  were  not  freemen,  nobles  and 
serfs;  andf  the  institutions  of  Europe,  in  proportion 
as  we  pursue  them  to  their  earliest  principles,  fur- 
nish only  the  stronger  confirmation  of  history.    We 
may,  no  doubt,  theorize   upon   this  subject,  and 
suggest  elementary  forms,   as   the  necessary  con- 
ditions of  a  later  system :  but  this  process  is  and 
must  be  merely  hypothetical,  nor  can  such  forms 
be  shown  to  have  had  at  any  time  a  true. historical 
existence.     That  every  German  was,  in  the  begin- 
ning. Kaiser  and  Pope  in  his  own  house^  may  be 
perfectly  true  in  one  sense ;  just  as  true  is  it  that 
every  Englishman's  house  is  his  castle.     Neverthe- 
less, the  German   lived   under   some  government, 
civil  or  religious,  or  both  :   and — to  the  great  ad- 
vantage of  society — the  process  of  law  surmounts 
without  the  slightest  difficulty  the  imaginary  battle- 
ments of  the  imaginary  fortress. 

The  whole  subject  must  be  considered  in  one  of 
two  ways :  with  reference,  namely,  to  a  man  living 


prineefrom  tlie  North.  Procop.  Bell.  Got,  ii.  15.  "  Reges  ex  nobilitate, 
duces  ex  virtute  sumunt."  Tac.  Germ.  vii.  "  Magna  patrum  merita 
principis  dignationem  etiam  adolescentulis  assignant."  Ibid.  xiii. 
Altbougli  mere  boys  might  be  kings,  they  could  hardly  be  duces,  in 
the  old  Teutonic  sense. 

'  Miiser,  Osnabriickische  Geschichte  (1780),  1"  Abschn.  §  8. 
"  Solche  einzelne  wohner  waren  Priester  und  Kbnige  in  ihren  Hauseru 
und  Hofmarken,"  etc.    See  his  references  to  Tac.  Germ.  x.  etc. 


124  THE  SAXOXS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

alone  with  his  family,  or  to  the  same  man  and 
family,  in  a  bond  of  union  with  others,  that  is  in 
the  state. 

Could  we  conceive  a  permanent  condition  of 
society,  such  that  each  particular  family  lived 
apart,  without  connection  or  communion  with 
others,  we  must  admit  the  inevitable  grflwth  of  a 
patriarchal  system,  of  which  the  eldest  member  of 
the  family  would  be  the  head ;  a  system  similar  to 
that  which  we  do  find  described  as  prevailing  in 
the  wandering  family  of  Abraham.  But  such  a 
condition  could  only  exist  at  a  period  of  time,  and 
in  a  state  of  the  earth,  which  admitted  of  frequent 
migration,  and  while  the  population  bore  a  small 
proportion  to  the  means  of  support,  perhaps  even 
in  countries  where  water  is  of  greater  value  than 
land.  Thus  the  moment  the  family  of  Abraham 
became  too  numerous,  and  his  herdsmen  found  it 
necessary  to  defend  their  wells  and  pastures  against 
the  herdsmen  of  Lot,  a  separation  took  place  and 
the  Scheiks  parted,  according  to  the  provisions  of 
a  solemn  compact,  that  there  might  not  be  strife 
between  them^.  But,  setting  aside  the  mysterious 
purposes  for  which  the  race  of  Abraham  were  made 
wanderers,  and  which  impress  an  exceptional  cha- 
racter upon  their  whole  history,  it  is  clear  that 
even  they  were  surrounded  by  a  society,  whose  con- 
ditions were  totally  diflTerent  from  any  that  could 
have  existed  in  Germany.  They  fled  from  the  face 
of  a  depraved  cultivation,  prevalent  in  the  cities, 

'  Genesis  xiii.  6,  sey. 


CH,  v.]  THE  FREEMAN.    THE  NOBLE.  125 

and  they  were  sojourners  only  from  place  to  place, 
till  the  fulness  of  time,  when  they  were  to  found 
the  normal  theocracy  of  the  world. 

To  a  certain  degree  they  resembled  the  squatters 
in  the  backwoods  of  America;  like  them,  they  esta- 
blished a  law  for  themselves,  and  acted  upon  it: 
— with  the  nature  of  that  law,  divine  or  human,  we 
have  nothing  to  do,  for  the  purposes  of  this  in- 
quiry : — in  this  sense,  indeed,  they  could  be  kings 
and  priests  in  their  own  house ;  but  so  are,  or  were, 
the  North  American  Regulators,  who,  in  their  own 
families  and  among  all  over  whom  they  could  esta- 
blish their  power,  acted  as  judges,  and  both  pro- 
mulgated and  executed  a  law  which  was  necessary 
to  their  very  existence  in  the  widerness. 

But  I  find  it  impossible  to  admit  that  the  origin 
of  our  Germanic  nations  is  to  be  found  in  any  such 
solitary  households,  or  families ;  were  it  true,  as 
Moser  appears  to  argue^,  of  some  parts  of  West- 
phalia, it  would  not  be  so  of  other  districts  in 
southern  Germany,  as  he  indeed  admits^,  and, 
particularly,  it  would  not  be  true  of  England.  In 
these  two  cases  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  some 
kind  of  military  organization  preceded  the  peace- 
ful settlement,  and  in  many  respects  determined 
its  mode  and  character^.     But,  even  if  we  admit 

'  Osnab.  Gesch.  i.  §  2.  =  Ibid.  i.  §.  7. 

^  There  cannot  be  any  doubt  respecting  England,  where  the 
-  Germanic  race  are  not  autochthonous.  The  organization  of  the  Suevi 
may  be  learnt  from  Caesar  (Bell.  Gall.  iv.  1, 2, 3),  and  Moser  very 
justly  observes  that  the  Swabian  law  must  necessarily  have  difi'ered 
from  the  Saxon.  Osnab.  Gesch.  i.  §  7.  So,  to  a  certain  degree,  must 
the  Anglosaxon  from  both. 


126  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i 

to  the  fullest  extent,  the  doctrine  of  solitary  set- 
tlements, we  must  still  contend  that  these  are,  in 
their  very  nature,  temporary;  that  they  contain 
no  possible  provision  for  stability,  in  short  that 
they  are  excluded  by  the  very  idea  itself  of  a  state  ; 
yet  it  is  as  a  member  of  a  state  that  man  exists, 
that  he  is  intended  to  exist^,  and  unless  as  a  mem- 
ber of  a  state,  he  is  incapable  of  existing  as  a  man. 
He  can  as  little  create  a  language  as  create  a  state : 
he  is  born  to  both,  for  both,  and  without  both  he 
cannot  exist  at  all. 

Each  single  family  then  is  a  state :  two,  three  or 
four  families  are  a  state,  under  larger  conditions. 
How  are  these  last  to  be  settled  ] 

Where  a  number  of  independent  households  are 
thinly  dispersed  over  a  portion  of  the  country,  their 
reciprocal  relations  and  position  will  probably  be 
more  or  less  of  the  following  lynd. 

Some  arrangement  will  exist  for  the  regulation 
of  the  terms  on  which  the  use  of  the  woods,  waters 
and  common  uncultivated  land  may  be  enjoyed  by 
all  the  settlers :  it  is  even  possible  that  they  may 
have  some  common  religious  ceremonies  as  the 
basis  of  this  arrangement^.  But  further  than  this 
there  need  be  no  union  or  mutual  dependence ; 
each  solitary  homestead  is  a  state  by  itself,  pos- 
sessing the  jus  belli ;  in  no  federal  relation  to, 
and  consequently  in  a  state  of  war  with,   every 

'  Aristotle's  Politics,  book  i.  cap.  1.    Dahlmann,  Politik,  §  1, 2, 3. 

^  It  is  of  course  extremely  difficult  to  conceive  this  apart  from  the 
existence  of  a  common  priesthood ;  but  such  a  priesthood  is  already 
the  commencement  of  a  regular  state. 


CH.  v.]  THE  FREEMAN.    THE  NOBLE.  127 

other  household,  even  though  this  right  of  war 
should  not  be  in  active  operation  at  any  given 
moment^. 

In  his  own  household  every  man  may  bear  rule, 
either  following  his  own  arbitrary  will,  or  in  accord- 
ance with  certain  general  principles,  which  he  pro- 
bably recognizes  in  common  with  his  neighbours. 
He  may  have  a  family  worship  of  his  own,  of  which 
he  will  be  the  chief  priest^,  and  which  worship  may 
or  may  not  be  consistent  with  that  of  his  neighbours. 
If  he  is  troublesome  to  them,  they  may  root  him 
out,  slay  or  enslave  him,  do  with  him  what  seems 
good  in  their  eyes,  or  whatsoever  they  have  power 
to  do.  If  he  thrives  and  accumulates  wealth,  they 
may  despoil  him,  or  he  oppress  them, — all,  how- 
ever, jure  belli,  for  there  can  be  no  jus  imperii  in 
such  a  case. 

This,  however,  cannot  be  the  normal  state  of 
man.  The  anxious  desire,  it  might  almost  be  called 
instinctive  yearning,  to  form  a  part  of  a  civilized 
society,  forbids  its  continuance,  not  less  than  the 
obvious  advantage  of  entering  into  a  mutual  gua- 
rantee of  peace  and  security.  The  production  of 
food  and  other  necessaries  of  life  is  the  first  busi- 

'  In  such  a  case,  power  or  force  being  tlie  only  terra  of  reference, 
each  household  will  be  determined  by  that  alone  in  its  intercourse 
with  others.  If  A  wants  a  slave,  he  will  war  upon  and  take  B,  if  he 
can :  but  to  prevent  this,  B  and  C  will  unite ;  so  that  at  last  a 
regulated  union  is  found  best  for  all  parties,  in  respect  to  themselves 
as  a  community,  and  against  all  other  communities. 

"  Tac.  Germ.  x.  "  Si  publico  consuletur,  Saoerdos  civitatis,  sinpri- 
vatim,  ipsepaterfamiliae, precatus  Deos .  . .  ."  This  seems  to  indicate,  at 
the  commencement,  an  independent  priestly  power  in  the  paterfamilias. 
Compare  the  remarkable  history  in  Judges,  cap.  xvii,  xviii. 


128  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i 

ness  of  men :  the  attempt  to  take  forcible  possession 
of,  or  to  defend,  accumulated  property,  presupposes 
the  accumulation.  While  the  land  and  water  are 
more  than  sufBcient  for  the  support  of  the  popula- 
tion, the  institutions  proper  to  peace  will  prevail. 
It  is  inconceivable,  and  repugnant  to  the  very 
nature  of  man,  that  such  institutions  should  not  be 
established  the  moment  that  two  or  more  separate 
families  become  conscious  of  each  other's  existence^* 
and  in  respect  to  our  Germanic  forefathers,  we  find 
such  in  full  vigour  from  their  very  first  appearance 
in  history. 

Some  of  the  institutions  essential  to  the  great 
aim  of  establishing  civil  society  at  the  least  possible 
sacrifice  of  individual  freedom — such  as  the  Wer- 
gild, the  Frank  pledge,  etc. — will  be  investigated  in 
their  proper  places :  they  seem  to  offer  a  nearly 
perfect  guarantee  for  society  at  an  early  period. 
But  for  the  present  we  must  confine  ourselves  to 
the  subject  of  personal  rank :  and  as  the  centre  and 
groundwork  of  the  whole  Teutonic  scheme  is  the 
individual  freeman,  it  is  with  him  that  we  must 
commence  our  investigation. 

The  natural  divisions  into  which  all  human  society 
must  be  distributed,  with  respect  to  the  beings 
that  form  it,  are  the  Free  and  the  Unfree^,  those 

'  The  only  place  where  I  can  admit  of  such  solitary  settlements  ig 
Scandinavia,  and  even  there  they  must  have  formed  the  exception, 
not  the  rule.     See  Chap.  II.  p.  68. 

^  "  Summa  itaque  divisio  per.sonarum  hsec  est,  quod  omnes  homines 
aut  liberi  sunt  aut  servi."  Fleta,  bk.  i.  cap.  I.  "  Est  autem  libertas, 
naturalis  facultas  ejus,  quod  cuique  facere  lihet,  nisi  quod  de  jure  aut 
vi  prohibetur."    Ibid.  cap.  2. 


CH.  v.]  THE  FREEMAN.    THE  NOBLE.  129 

who  can  protect  themselves  and  those  who  must 
be  in  the  protection  of  others.  Even  in  the  family 
this  distinction  must  be  found,  and  the  wife  and 
son  are  unfree  in  relation  to  the  husband  and 
the  father ;  they  are  in  his  mund.  From  this  mund 
the  son  indeed  may  be  emancipated,  but  not  the 
wife  or  daughter :  these  can  only  change  it ;  the 
wife  by  the  act  of  God,  namely  the  death  of  the 
husband ;  the  daughter  by  marriage.  In  both  cases 
the  mund  passes  over  into  other  hands  ^ 

Originally  the  Freeman  is  he  who  possesses  at 
least  as  much  land  as,  being  tilled,  will  feed  him, 
strength  and  skill  to  labour,  and  arms  to  defend 
his  possession.  Married  to  one  free  woman  who 
shares  his  toils,  soothes  his  cares,  and  orders  his 
household,  he  becomes  the  founder  of  the  family 
— the  first  unit  in  the  state :  the  son  who  springs 
from  this  marriage,  completes  the  family,  and 
centres  in  himself  the  blood,  the  civil  rights  and 
the  affections  of  his  two  progenitors.  It  is  thus, 
through  the  son,  that  the  family  becomes  the  foun- 
dation of  the  state  ^. 

The  union  of  a  greater  or  less  number  of  free 
heads  of  houses  upon  a  district  sufficient  for  their 
support,  in  a  mutual  guarantee  of  equal  civil  rights, 
is  the  state  itself:  for  man  is  evidently  formed  by 
God  to  live  in  a  regulated  .community,  by  which 
mode   of  life   alone  he  can  develope  the  highest 

'  See  Fleta,  bk.  i.  cap.  5,  6,  7,  9. 

"  It  is  probably  in  this  sense  that  the  Hindu  Institutes  assert, 
"  Then  only  ia  a  man  perfect  when  he  consists  of  three  persons  united, 
his  wife,  himself,  and  his  son."    Manu,  ch.  ix.  45. 

OL.  I.  K 


130  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

qualities  of  the  nature  which  God  has  implanted  in 
him  ;  and  the  first  community  is  the  union  of  free 
men  for  purposes  of  friendly  intercourse  and  mutual 
aid,  each  enjoying  at  the  hands  of  every  other  the 
same  rights  as  he  is  willing  to  grant  to  every  other, 
each  yielding  something  of  his  natural  freedom  in 
order  that  the  idea  of  state,  that  is  of  orderly  go- 
vernment, may  be  realized.  For  the  state  is  neces- 
sary, not  accidental.  Man  not  living  in  a  state, 
not  having  developed  and  in  some  degree  realized 
the  idea  of  state,  is,  in  so  far,  not  man  but  beast. 
He  has  no  past  and  no  future :  he  lives  for  the 
day,  and  does  not  even  accumulate  for  the  days  to 
come  :  he  lives,  thinks,  feels  and  dies  like  a  brute. 
For  man  is  free  through  the  existence,  not  the  ab- 
sence, of  law  ;  through  his  voluntary  and  self-con- 
scious relinquishment  of  the  power  to  do  wrong, 
and  the  adoption  of  means  to  counteract  and  dimi- 
nish his  own  tendency  to  evil.  The  amount  of 
personal  liberty  to  be  given  up  is  the  only  question 
of  practical  importance,  but  from  the  idea  of  Free- 
dom itself  results  the  law,  that  this  amount  must 
be  in  all  cases  a  minimum. 

The  ideas  of  freedom  and  equality  are  not,  how- 
ever, inseparable :  a  nation  of  slaves  may  exist  in 
sorrowful  equality  under  the  capricious  will  of  a 
native  or  foreign  tyrant :  a  nation  of  free  men  may 
cheerfully,  wisely  and  happily  obey  the  judge  or  the 
captain  they  have  elected  in  the  exigencies  of  peace 
and  war.  Hence  the  voluntary  union  of  free  men 
does  not  exclude  the  possibility  of  such  union  being 
either  originally  based  japon  terms  of  inequality,  or 


CH.  v.]  THE  FREEMAN.    THE  NOBLE.  131 

becoming  sooner  or  later  settled  upon  such  a  basis. 
But,  as  the  general  term  is  the  freedom,  I  take  this  as 
the  unity  which  involves  the  difference  ;  the  noble 
is  one  of  the  freemen,  and  is  made  noble  by  the  act 
of  the  free :  the  free  are  not  made  so  by  the  noble. 

By  these  principles  the  divisions  of  this  chapter 
are  regulated. 

The  freeman  is  emphatically  called  Man,  ceorl, 
mas,  maritus;  vpsepned  man,  armatus;  after  the  pre- 
valence of  slavery,  he  is,  for  distinction,  termed 
free,  frigman,  frihals,  i.  e.,  free  neck,  the  hand  of  a 
master  has  not  bent  his  neck^;  but  his  oldest  and 
purest  denomination  is  ceorl.  Till  a  very  late  pe- 
riod the  Anglosaxon  lavp  knows  no  other  distinction 
than  that  of  ceorl  and  eorP.  The  Old  Norse  Eigs- 
mal  which  is  devoted  to  the  origin  of  the  races, 
considers  Karl  as  the  representative  of  the  freeman. 
His  sons  are  Hair,  Anglosaxon,  PIsele,  vir ;  Drengr, 
Anglos.  Dreng,  vir ;  Jjegen,  Anglos.  Jiegn,  virfortis, 
miles,  minister ;  Holdr,  Anglos,  hold,  fugil,  fidelis ; 
Biii,  Anglos,  gebur,  colonus ;  Bondi,  Anglos,  bonda, 
colonus;  SmiSr,  Anglos.  Smi'S,  faber;  Seggr,  Anglos. 
Secg,  vir.  Among  the  daughters  are  Snot,  BruSr, 
Flio®  and  Wif.  Many  of  these  terms  yet  survive, 
to  represent  various  classes  of  freemen  in  almost 
every  Germanic  country^. 

'  The  converse  is  collibertus,  qui  collum  liberant,  culvert,  coward. 

^  Swa  eac  we  setta'S  he  eallum  hadum,  ge  ceorle,  ge  eorle  :  "  so  also 
we  ordain  concerning  all  degrees  of  men,  churl  as  well  as  earl."  Leg. 
MUt.  §  4. 

'  Conf.  Grimm,  Deut.  Rechtsalt.  283.  The  Latin  laws  of  the  Mid- 
dle Ages  usually  adopt  the  words,  Liber,  liber  homo,  ingenmis.  In 
reference  to  the  noble,  he  is  mediocris,  minqfiedus,  KaraSefo-Tepos ;  in 
respect  of  his  wife,  he  is  baro. 

k2 


132  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

The  rights  of  a  freeman  are  these.     He  has  land 
within  the  limits  of  the  community,  the  e'Sel  or 
hereditary  estate  (/cXifpoe,  hseredium,  hyd)  by  virtue 
of  which  he  is  a  portion  of  the  community,  bound 
to  various  duties  and  graced  with  his  various  pri- 
vileges.    For  although  his  rights  are  personal,  in- 
herent in  himself,  and  he  may  carry  them  with  hira 
into  the  wilderness  if  he  please,  still,  where  he  shall 
be  permitted  to  execute  them  depends  upon  his 
possession  of  lands  in   the  various  localities.     In 
these  he  is  entitled  to  vote  with  his  fellows  upon 
all  matters  concerning  the  general  interests  of  the 
community;  the  election  of  a  judge,  general  or 
king;    the  maintenance  of  peace  or  war  with  a 
neighbouring  community ;  the  abrogation  of  old,  or 
the  introduction  of  new  laws ;  the  admission  of  con- 
terminous freemen  to  a  participation  of  rights  and 
privileges  in  the  district.     He  is  not  only  entitled 
but  bound  to  share  in  the  celebration  of  the  public 
rites  of  religion,  to  assist  at  the  public  council  or 
Ding,  where  he  is  to  pronounce  the  customary  law, 
by  ancient  right,  and  so  assist  in  judging  between 
man  and  man ;  lastly  to  take  part,  as  a  soldier,  in 
such  measures  of  oiFence  and  defence  as  have  been 
determined  upon  by  the  whole  community.     He  is 
at  liberty  to  make  his  own  alliances,  to  unite  with 
other  freemen  in  the  formation  of  gilds  or  associa- 
tions for  religious  or  political  purposes.     He  can 
even  attach  himself,  if  he  will,  to  a  lord  or  patron, 
and   thus  withdraw  himself  from  the  duties  and 
the  privileges  of  freedom.     He  and  his  family  may 
depart  whither  he  will,  and  no  man  may  follow  or 


CH.  v.]  THE  FREEMAN.    THE  NOBLE.  133 

prevent  him  :  but  he  must  go  by  open  day  and  pub- 
licly, (probably  not  without  befitting  ceremonies 
and  a  symbolical  renunciation  of  his  old  seats,)  that 
all  may  have  their  claims  upon  him  settled  before 
he  departs^. 

The  freeman  must  possess,  and  may  bear  arms ; 
he  is  born  to  them,  scMldhurtig ;  he  wears  them  on 
all  occasions,  public  and  private,  "  nihil  neque  pub- 
licae  neque  privatae  rei  nisi  armati  agunt^;"  he  is 
entitled  to  use  them  for  the  defence  of  his  life  and 
honour ;  for  he  possesses  the  right  of  private  war- 
fare, and  either  alone,  or  with  the  aid  of  his  friends, 
may  fight,  if  it  seems  good  to  him.  This  right  is 
technically  named  fsehSe,  feud,  from  fa,  inimicus ; 
aud  to  be  exposed  to  it  is  f6eh'Se  beran,  to  hear  the 
feud^.  If  he  be  strong  enough,  or  ill-disposed 
enough,  to  prefer  a  violent  to  a  peaceful  settlement 
of  his  claims,  he  may  attack,  imprison  and  even 
slay  his  adversary,  but  then  he  must  bear  the  feud 
of  the  relations. 

Beside  the  arms  he  wears,  the^  sign  and  ornament 
of  his  freedom  is  the  long  hair  which  he  sufiers 


'  "Si  quia  liber  homo  migrare  voluerit  aliquo,  potestatem  habeat 
infra  dominium  regninostri,  cum  fara  sua,  migrare  quo  voluerit."  Leg. 
Roth.  177.  The  free  folk  on  the  Leutldrcher  Heide  "  are  free  and 
shall  .have  no  nachjagende  Herr"  («.  e.  Lord  hunting  after  them,  the 
Dominus  persequens  of  our  early  law-books).  Liinig.  Reichsarch. 
p.  spec.  cont.  4.  p.  803.  See  further  Grimm,  Deut.  Rechtsalt.  280, 
etc. 

'  Tac.  Germ.  xiii.  A  century  ago  gentlemen  wore  swords  in  France 
and  England,  and  courtiers  still  wear  them.  The  Hungarian  freeman 
transacts  no  public  business  unarmed. 

^  Lex.  Pres.  ii.  2. 


134  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [b6ok  i. 

to  float  upon  his  shoulders  or  winds  about  his 
head^. 

His  proper  measure  and  value,  by  which  his 
social  position  is  ascertained  and  defended,  is  the 
wergyld,  or  price  of  a  man.  His  life,  his  limbs, 
the  injuries  which  may  be  done  to  himself,  his  de- 
pendants and  his  property,  are  all  duly  assessed ; 
and  though  not  rated  so  highly  as  the  noble,  yet  he 
stands  above  the  stranger,  the  serf  or  the  freedman. 
In  like  manner  his  land,  though  not  entirely  exempt 
from  charges  and  payments  for  public  purposes, 
is  far  less  burthened  than  the  land  of  the  unfree. 
Moreover  he  possesses  rights  in  the  commons, 
woods  and  waters,  which  the  unfree  were  assuredly 
not  permitted  to  exercise. 

The  great  and  essential  distinction,  however, 
which  he  never  entirely  loses  under  any  circum- 
stances, is  that  he  aids  in  governing,  himself,  that 
is  in  making,  applying  and  executing  the  laws  by 
which  the  free  and  the  unfree  are  alike  governed; 
that  he  yields,  in  short,  a  voluntary  obedience  to 
the  law,  for  the  sake  of  living  under  a  law,  in  an 
orderly  and  peaceful  community. 

In  the  state  of  things  which  we  are  now  consi- 


'  There  were  differences  in  this  respect  among  the  different  races, 
and  in  some,  the  long  hair  may  have  been  confined  to  the  noble  fami- 
lies. Among  the  Saxons,  however,  it  seems  that  it  was  also  used  by  the 
free  :  gif  iieo  wif,  locbore,  lyswses  hwset  gedo,  if  a  free  woman,  that 
wears  long  hair,  do  any  wrong. '  Lex  ^^elb.  §  73.  To  cut  a  free- 
man's hair  was  to  dishonour  him.  Lex  .iElfr.  §  35.  See  also  Grimm, 
Deut.  Eechtsalt.  pp.  240,  283.  Eumenius  speaks  of  the  Franks  as 
"prolixo  crinerutilantes."     Paneg.  Constant,  c.  18. 


CH.  V.}  THE  FEEEMAN.    THE  NOBLE.  135 

dering,  the  noble  belongs  to  the  class  of  freemen ; 
out  of  it  he  springs,  in  all  its  rights  and  privileges 
he  shares,  to  aU  its  duties  he  is  liable,  but  in  a 
different  degree.  He  possesses  however  certain 
advantages  which  the  freeman  does  not.  Like  the 
latter  he  is  a  holder  of  real  estate ;  he  owns  land  in 
the  district,  but  his  lot  is  probably  larger,  and  is 
moreover  free  from  various  burthens  which  press 
upon  his  less  fortunate  neighbour.  He  must  also 
take  part  in  the  Ding,  placitum,  or  general  meeting, 
but  he  and  his  class  have  the  leading  and  directing 
of  the  public  business,  and  ultimately  the  execution 
of  the  general  will  ^.  The  people  at  large  may  elect, 
but  he  alone  can  be  elected,  to  the  offices  of  priest, 
judge  or  king.  Upon  his  life  and  dignity  a  higher 
price  is  laid  than  upon  those  of  the  mere  freeman. 
He  is  the  unity  in  the  mass,  the  representative  of 
the  general  sovereignty,  both  at  home  and  abroad. 
The  tendency  of  his  power  is  continually  to  in- 
crease, while  that  of  the  mere  freeman  is  continu- 
ally to  diminish,  falling  in  the  scale  in  exact  pro- 
portion as  that  of  the  noble  class  rises. 

The   distinctive   name    of    the   noble   is  EorP. 

'  "De  minoribus  rebus  prinoipes  consultant;  de  majoribus  omnes. 
Ita  tamen  ut  ea  quoque  quorum  penes  plebem  arbitrium  est,  apud  prin- 
oipes pertractentur."  Tao.  Germ.  xi.  Something  similar  to  this  pro- 
bably prevailed  in  the  Dorian  constitution,  and  in  the  old  Ionian  before 
the  establishment  of  the  great  democracy.  The  mass  of  the  people 
might  accept  or  reject,  but  hardly,  I  think,  debate  the  propositions  of 
the  nobles.  After  all  the  7rpo/3ou\oi  seem  necessary  in  all  states.  See 
Arist.  Polit.  iv.  §  15. 

^  In  the  Eigsmal,  Jarl  is  the  progenitor  of  all  the  noble  races,  as 
Karl  is  of  the  free. 


136  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

^'Sele,  nobilis,  and  Eice,  pofens,  denote  his  qua 
lities,  and  he  bears  other  titles  according  to  the 
accidents  of  his  social  position :  thus  ealdor,  ealdor- 
man,  princess ;  wita,  weota,  consiliarius ;  optimas  ; 
senior ;  procer ;  melior,  etc.  In  addition  to  his  own 
personal  privileges,  the  noble  possesses  in  the  full- 
est extent  every  right  of  the  freeman,  the  highest 
order  of  whose  body  he  forms. 


137 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  KING. 

As  the  noble  is  to  the  freeman,  so  in  some  respects 
is  the  King  to  the  noble.  He  is  the  summit  of  his 
class,  and  completes  the  order  of  the  freemen.  Even 
in  the  dim  twilight  of  Teutonic  history  we  find 
tribes  and  nations  subject  to  kings:  others  again 
acknowledged  no  such  office,  and  Tacitus  seems  to 
regard  this  state  as  the  more  natural  to  our  fore- 
fathers. I  do  not  think  this  clear :  on  the  con- 
trary, kingship,  in  a  certain  sense,  seems  to  me 
rooted  in  the  German  mind  and  institutions,  and 
universal  among  some  particular  tribes  and  con- 
federacies. The  free  people  recognize  in  the  King 
as  much  of  the  national  unity  as  they  consider 
necessary  to  their  existence  as  a  substantive  body, 
and  as  the  representative  of  the  whole  nation  they 
consider  him  to  be  a  mediator  between  themselves 
and  the  gods^.     The  elective  principle  is  the  safe- 

'  There  is  a  tradition  among  the  Swedes  that  if  the  gods  expressed 
their  anger  with  the  people  hy  scarcity,  or  iU  success  in  war,  the  most 
aeceptahle  offering  to  them  was  the  King.  See  Yngling,  Sag.  c.  xviii. 
(Laing,  i.  230) ;  again,  c.  xlvii.  (vol.  i.  p.  256),  where  the  scene  is 
laid  in  Xorway :  because,  says  the  Tngl.  Sag.,  the  Swiar  were  wont  to 
attribute  to  their  kings  the  fruitfulness  or  dearth  of  the  seasons.  Yet 
they  did  not  interfere  with  the  succession  in  the  son  of  the  sacrificed 
king.     See  Geijer,  Hist.  i.  404. 


138  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

guard  of  their  freedom ;  the  monarchical  principle 
is  the  condition  of  their  nationality.  But  this  idea 
of  kingship  is  not  that  which  we  now  generally  en- 
tertain ;  it  is  in  some  respects  more,  in  others  less, 
comprehensive. 

And  here  it  seems  necessary  to  recur  to  a  defi- 
nition of  words.  With  us,  a  king  is  the  source  both 
of  the  military  and  the  judicial  powers ;  he  is  chief 
judge  and  general  in  chief;  among  protestants  he 
is  head  of  the  church,  and  only  wants  the  functions 
of  high  priest,  because  the  nature  of  the  church 
of  Christ  admits  of  no  priestly  body  exclusively 
engaged  in  the  sacrifices,  or  in  possession  of  the 
exclusive  secrets,  of  the  cult  ^.  But  in  the  eye  of  the 
state,  and  as  the  head  of  a  state  clergy,  he  is  the 
high  priest,  the  authority  in  which  ultimately  even 
the  parochial  order  centres  and  finds  its  comple- 
tion. He  is  an  officer  of  the  state ;  the  highest 
indeed  and  the  noblest,  but  to  the  state  he  belongs 
as  a  part  of  itself:  with  us  a  commission  of  regency, 
a  stranger  or  a  woman  may  perform  all  the  func- 
tions of  royalty;  the  houses  of  parliament  may 
limit  them ;  a  successful  soldier  may  usurp  them. 
With  the  early  Germans,  the  king  was  something 
different  from  this. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  Mark  or  Ga,  however  nu- 
merous or  however  few  they  may  be,  must  always 
have  some  provision  for  the  exigencies  of  peace 
and  war.  But  peace  is  the  natural  or  normal  state, 
that  for  which  war  itself  exists,  and  the  institu- 

^  1  Peter,  ii.  5,  9. 


OH.  VI.]  THE  KINO.  139 

tions  proper  to  war  are  the  exception,  not  the  rule. 
Hence  the  priestly  and  judicial  functions  are  per- 
manent,— the  military,  merely  temporary.  The  for- 
mer, whether  united  in  the  same  person,  or  divided 
between  two  or  more,  are  the  necessary  conditions 
of  the  existence  of  the  state  as  a  community ;  the 
latter  are  merely  requisite  from  time  to  time,  to 
secure  the  free  exertion  of  the  former,  to  defend 
the  existence  of  the  community  against  the  attacks 
of  other  communities. 

We  may  admit  that  the  father  is  the  first  priest 
and  judge  in  his  own  household;  he  has,  above  all 
other,  the  sacerdotal  secrets,  and  the  peculiar  rites, 
of  family  worship ;  these,  not  less  than  age,  expe- 
rience and  the  dignity  of  paternity,  are  the  causes 
and  the  justification  of  his  power.  The  judicial 
is  a  corollary  from  the  sacerdotal  authority.  But 
what  applies  to  the  individual  household  applies  to 
any  aggregate  of  households :  even  as  the  family 
worship  and  the  family  peace  require  the  exertion 
of  these  powers  for  their  own  maintenance  and 
preservation,  so  do  the  public  worship  and  the 
public  peace  require  their  existence,  though  in  a 
yet  stronger  degree.  From  among  the  heads  of 
families  some  one  or  more  must  be  elected  to  dis- 
charge the  all-important  functions  which  they  im- 
ply. If  the  solemn  festivals  and  public  rites  of  the 
god  are  to  be  duly  celebrated,  if  the  anger  of  the 
thunderer  is  to  be  propitiated,  and  the  fruits  of  the 
earth  to  be  blessed, — if  the  wounded  cattle  are  to  be 
healed,  the  fever  expelled,  or  the  secret  malice  of 
evil  spirits  to  be  defeated, — who  but  the  priest  can 


140  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

lead  the  ceremonies  and  prescribe  the  ritual"?  Who 
but  he  can  sanctify  the  transfer  of  land,  the  union 
of  man  and  wife,  the  entrance  of  the  newborn  child 
upon  his  career  of  life  ;  who  but  himself  can  con- 
duct judicial  investigations,  where  the  deities  are 
the  only  guardians  of  truth  and  avengers  of  perjury, 
or  where  their  supernatural  power  alone  can  deter- 
mine between  innocence  and  guilt  ^  1  Lastly,  who 
but  he  can  possess  authority  to  punish  the  freeman 
for  offences  dangerous  to  the  wellbeing  of  all  free- 
men 1  To  what  power  less  than  that  of  God  will 
the  freeman  condescend  to  bow  ^  1 

How  then  is  it  to  be  determined  to  whom  such 
power,  once  admitted  to  be  necessary,  shall  be  at 
first  entrusted  ]  The  first  claim  clearly  lies  with 
those  who  are  believed  to  be  descended  from  the 
gods,  or  from  the  local  god  of  each  particular  dis- 
trict^. They  are  his  especial  care,  his  children; 
he  led  them  into  the  land,  and  gave  them  the  secret 
of  appeasing  or  pleasing  him :  he  protects  them  by 
his  power,  and  guides  them  by  his  revelations :  he 
is  their  family  and  household  god,  the  progenitor 
of  their  race,  one  of  themselves ;  and  they  are  the 


'  The  various  forms  of  the  ordeal  were  undoubtedly  pagan,  though 
retained  by  the  Christian  communities  of  the  Germans. 

^  Even  in  war  the  general  had  not  at  first  the  power  of  punishing 
the  freeman.  The  very  urgencies  of  military  discipline  were  subordi- 
nated to  the  divine  authority  of  the  priests.  "  Duces  exemplo  potius 
quam  imperio,  si  prompti,  si  conspicui,  si  ante  aciem  agant,  admira- 
tione  praesunt.  Ceterum  neque  animadvertere,  neque  vincire,  ne  ver- 
berare  quidem  nisi  sacerdotibus  permissum ;  non  quasi  in  poenam,  nee 
duels  jussu,  sed  velut  deo  imperante,  quem  adessebellantibus  credunt." 
Tac.  Germ.  vii. 

^  "  Diis  genitos  sacrosque  reges."    Tac,  Orat.  12. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  141 

best,  indeed  the  only,  expounders  of  his  will.     A 
single  family,  with  which  others  have  by  slow  de- 
grees united  themselves,  by  which  others  have  been 
adopted,  and  which  in  process  of  time  have  thus 
become  the  nucleus  of  a  state,  will  probably  remain 
in  possession  of  this  sacerdotal  power;  the  god  of 
the  land  does  not  readily  give  place  to  others,  and 
those  with  whom  his  worship  identifies  him  will 
continue  to  be  his  priests  long  after  others  have 
joined  in  their  ceremonies.     Or  it  is  possible  that 
a  single  household  wandering  from  a  more  civilized 
community  may  be  admitted  among  a  rude  people, 
to  whom  they  impart  more  perfect  methods  of  til- 
lage, more  eificient  medical  precepts,  more  impar- 
tial maxims  of  law,  better   or   more    ornamental 
modes  of  architecture,  or  more  accurate  computa- 
tions of  time,  than  they  had  previously  possessed : 
the  mysterious  courses  of  the  stars,  the  secrets  of 
building  bridges i,  towers  and  ships,  of  ploughing 
and  of  sowing,  of  music  and  of  healing,  have  been 
committed  to  them  by  their  god :  for  the  sake  of 
the  benefits  they  offer,   their  god  is  received  into 
the  community  ;    and  they  remain  his  priests  be- 
cause they  alone  are  cognizant  of,  and  can  conduct, 
the  rites  wherewith  he  is  to  be  served. 

Even  in  periods  so  remote  as  not  to  be  con- 
founded with  those  of  national  migrations,  a  small 
body  of  superior  personal  strength,  physical  beauty, 
mental  organization,  or  greater  skill  in  arms,  may 

'  It  is  a  curious  fact  that  Pontifex,  literally  the  hridye-maker,  should 
be  the  generic  Latin  name  for  a  priest.  At  Athens  there  was  a  gens  of 
ye(j)vpaioi :  were  these  ever  a  sacerdotal  trihe  ? 


142  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

establish  a  preponderance  over  a  more  numerous 
but  less  favoured  race :  in  such  a  case  they  will 
probably  join  the  whole  mass  of  the  people,  recei- 
ving or  taking  lands  among  them,  and  they  will 
by  right  of  their  superiority  constitute  a  noble, 
sacerdotal,  royal  race,  among  a  race  of  freemen  i. 
They  may  introduce  their  religion  as  well  as  their 
form  of  government,  as  did  the  Dorians  in  the  Pelo- 
ponesus.  Or  if,  as  must  frequently  be  the  case, 
a  compromise  take  place,  they  and  their  god  will 
reserve  the  foremost  rank,  although  the  conquered 
or  otherwise  subjected  people  may  retain  a  share 
in  the  state,  and  vindicate  for  their  ancient  deities 
a  portion  of  reverence  and  cult :  the  gods  of  nature, 
of  the  earth  and  agriculture,  thus  yield  for  a  while 
to  the  supremacy  of  the  gods  of  mental  cultivation 
and  warlike  prowess :  Demeter  gives  way  before 
Apollo,  afterwards  however  to  recover  a  portion  of 
her  splendour :  Odinn  obtains  the  soul  of  the  war- 
rior and  the  freeman ;  Dorr  must  content  himself 
with  that  of  the  thrall. 

In  all  the  cases  described, — to  which  we  may  add 
violent  conquest  by  a  migratory  body,  leaving  only 
garrisons  and  governors  behind  it", — the  family  or 
tribe  which  are  the  ruling  tribe,  are  those  in  whom 
the  highest  rank,  dignity,  nobility  and  power  are 
inherent :  but  unless  some  peculiar  circumstances, 

^   Atrtov  6e ort  rpoTTOv  Tiva  dperrj  Tvy^dvov(Ta  x^prfyias  Kai  ^laQi- 

crOai  bvvarat.  /za\to"Ta,  Kal  eorty  del  to  Kparovu  ev  vnepoxjj  dyadov  Tivos, 
&a-T€  doKelv  fir/  avev  dperrjs  elvai  ti^v  ^iav ....  Arist.  Polit.  I.  cap.  6. 
(Bekker.)     We  may  remember  the  Incas  in  Peru. 

^  A  fact  abundantly  familiar  in  the  history  of  India,  whether  under 
Afghan,  Mogul  or  Blahratta  rule. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  143 

arising  within  the  ruling  tribe  itself,  limit  the  suc- 
cession to  the  members  of  one  household,  as  for 
example  among  the  Jews,  the  sanctity  of  the  tribe 
will  be  general  and  not  individual.  They  will  be 
alone  qualified  to  hold  the  high  and  sacred  offices ; 
but  the  will  of  the  whole  state  ^,  i.  e.  popular  election, 
must  determine  which  particular  man  shall  be  in- 
vested with  their  functions.  Out  of  the  noble  race 
the  election  cannot  indeed  be  made,  but  the  choice 
of  the  individual  noble  is,  at  first,  free.  This  is  the 
simplest  mode  of  stating  the  problem :  history  how- 
ever is  filled  with  examples  of  compromise,  where 
two  or  more  noble  tribes  divide  the  supreme  au- 
thority in  even  or  uneven  shares:  two  kings,  for 
instance,  represent  two  tribes  of  Dorians  in  the 
Spartan  woXiTe'ia^.  The  seven  great  and  heredi- 
tary ministerial  houses  in  the  German  empire,  the 
five  great  Ooloos  of  the  Dooraunee  Afghans,  with 
their  hereditary  offices,  represent  similar  facts. 
Among  the  old  Bavarians,  the  Agilolfings  could 
alone  hold  the  ducal  dignity,  but  three  or  four 
other  families  possessed  a  peculiar  nobility,  raising 
them  nearly  as  much  above  the  rest  of  the  nobles. 


'  The  whole  state  may  possibly  consist  only  of  the  predominant 
tribe,  as  Dorians  or  lonians,  or  Anglosaxons :  the  rest  of  the  popula- 
tion of  the  country  may  be  perioecian  as  were  the  inhabitants  of  La- 
conia,  and  the  British.  The  ruling  tribe  itself  may  have  distinctions 
of  rank ;  as  for  instance  the  Hypomeiones  among  the  Spartans,  the 
Ceorlas  among  the  Anglosaxons. 

'  The  rule,  reffes  ex  nohilitate,  duces  ex  virtuie,  ayaBov  rivos  vTrepoxfi, 
applies  m  strictness  to  this  case.  Agis  or  Agesilaus  might  be  gene- 
rals, but  Brasidas  could  not  have  been  a  king.  Descent  from  Heraclea 
was  to  the  Spartiate  what  descent  from  Woden  was  to  the  Saxon, — the 
condition  of  royalty. 


144  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

as  the  nobles  were  raised  above  the  rest  of  the 
people.  Under  these  circumstances  the  attributes 
of  sovereignty  may  be  continually  apportioned :  to 
one  family  it  may  belong  to  furnish  kings  or  judges ; 
to  another,  generals;  to  a  third,  priests i;  or  this 
division  may  have  arisen  in  course  of  time,  within 
a  single  family.  Or  again,  the  general  may  only 
have  been  chosen,  'pro  re  nata,  when  the  necessity 
of  the  case  required  it,  from  among  the  judges 
or  priests,  or  even  from  among  those  who  were 
not  capable  by  birth  of  the  judicial  or  sacerdotal 
power.  We  are  able  to  refer  to  an  instance  in 
support  of  this  assertion ;  Beda^  says  of  the  Old- 
saxons,  that  is,  the  Saxons  of  the  continent :  "  Non 
enim  habent  regem  iidem  antiqui  Saxones,  sed 
satrapas  plurimos,  suae  genti  praepositos,  qui,  in- 
gruente  belli  articulo,  mittunt  aequaliter  sortes,  et 
quemcumque  sors  ostenderit,  hunc  tempore  belli 
ducem  omnes  sequuntur,  huic  obtemperant ;  per- 
acto  autem  bello,  rursum  aequalis  potentiae  omnes 
hunt  satrapae."  And  this  throws  light  upon  what 
Tacitus  asserts  of  the  Germanic  races  generally^: 


'  In  the  Doorauuee  empire,  the  Suddozyes  had  the  exdusive  right 
to  royalty.  Sooja  ul  Moolk  was  the  last  of  the  race  in  Caubul.  The 
Essufzyes  were  hereditary  viziers  :  the  Banikzyes,  the  family  of  Dost 
Mahomet  Khan,  hereditary  commanders  in  chief:  the  union  of  the 
vizierat  with  the  military  command  in  Dost  Mahomet's  father,  led  to 
the  ultimate  ruin  of  the  Suddozye  princes.  In  the  Mogul  empire,  the 
great  offices  of  state  became  hereditary,  and  the  historians  of  India 
could  speak  of  the  Vizier  of  Oude,  the  Nizam,  the  Peishwa  or  the  Gui- 
cowar,  long  after  the  throne  of  Aurungzeb  had  crumbled  to  the  dust. 

"  Hist.  Eccl.  V.  10.  Alfred  translates  the  word  satrapae  by  ecMor- 
men. 

'  Germ.  xii. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  1^5 

"  Eliguntur  in  iisdem  conciliis  et  principes,  qui  iura 
per  pagos  vicosque  reddunt.'' 

The  early  separation  of  the  judicial  from  the 
strictly  sacerdotal  functions,  to  a  certain  degree  at 
least,  is  easily  conceived.  It  would  be  mere  matter 
of  convenience,  as  soon  as  a  population  became 
numerous  and  widely  dispersed.  Yet  to  a  very  late 
period  among  the  Teutons  we  find  traces  of  the 
higher  character.  The  ordeal  or  judgment  of  God, 
the  casting  of  lots  and  divination,  are  all  derived 
from  and  connected  with  priesthood.  The  heathen 
place  of  judgment  was  sanctified  to  the  gods  by 
priestly  ceremonies  ;  nor  can  it  be  supposed  that 
the  popular  councils  were  held  without  a  due  in- 
auguration by  religious  rites,  or  a  marked  exertion 
of  authority  by  the  priests.  Tacitus  speaking  of 
these  parliaments  makes  the  intervention  of  the 
priest  the  very  first  step  to  business :  "  Ut  turbae 
placuit,  considunt  armati.  Silentium  per  sacerdo- 
tes,  quibus  turn  et  coercendi  ius  est,  imperatur^." 
The  Witena-gemot  of  later  times  was  opened  by 
the  celebration  of  mass^,  and  even  yet  Mr.  Speaker 
goes  to  prayers.  During  the  flourishing  period 
of  Christianity  among  the  Anglosaxons,  synods  of 
the  bishops  and  their  clergy  were  commanded  to  be 
held  twice  a  year,  to  act  as  supreme  courts  of  jus- 

'  Germ.  xi. 

^  "Quadam  die  multi  tarn  nobiles  q^uam  privati  piimo  mane  ad 
ipsum  locum  placitaturi  convenerunt ;  sed  ante  placitum  ut  Presbyter 
eis  missam  eelebraret  rogaverunt.  At  ille,  qui  ipsa  nocte  cum  uxore 
dormierat,  ad  sacrum  altaris  officium  accedere  formidabat ;  itaque  ne- 
gavit  88  id  facturum,"  etc.  about  an.  1045.  Sim.  Dunelm.  Hist.  Eccl. 
Dun.  cap.  xlv.  (lib.  iii.  cap.  10.  p.  169.  Edfof  1732.) 
VOL.  I.  L 


146  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

tice,  at  least  in  civil  causes^.     The  law  of  the  Visi- 
goths, while  it  recognizes  a  separation  of  the  per- 
sons, implies  a  confusion  of  the  jurisdiction :    "  Si 
iudex   vel  sacerdos  reperti  fuerint  nequiter  iudi- 
casse^."     The  people,  it  is  true,  found  the  judg- 
ment or  verdict,  but  the  judge  declared  the  law, 
pronounced  the  sentence,  and  most  probably  super- 
intended the  execution :  in  this  he  represented  at 
cace  the  justice  of  the  god,  and  the  collective  power 
oi  the  state.     Thus  then  we  may  conclude  that  at 
first  in  every  Mark,  and  more  especially  in  every 
Ga  or  Scir,  when  various   Marks  had   coalesced, 
there  was  found  at  least  one  man  of  a  privileged 
family,  who  either  permanently  or  for  a  time  con- 
ducted the  public  affairs  during  peace,  and  was, 
from  his  functions,  not  less  than  his  descent,  nearly 
connected  with  the  religion  of  the  people  and  the 
worship  of  the  gods:  whether  this  man  be  called 
ealdorman,  iudex,  rex,  satrapa  or  princeps,  seems 
of  little  moment :  he  is  the  president  of  the  free- 
men in  their  solemn  acts,  as  long  as  peace  is  main- 
tained, the  original  King  of  the  shii-e  or  small  na- 
tion.    If  he  be  by  birth  a  priest,  and  distinguished 
by  military  talents,  as  well  as  elected  to  be  a  judge, 
he   unites    all  the  conditions   of  kingship^:  and, 
under  such  circumstances,  he  will  probably  not  only 
extend  his  power  over  neighbouring  communities, 

'  If  Donniges  is  right  in  Us  view,  the  Frankish  clergy  were  to  ex- 
ercise a  similar  jurisdiction  in  criminal  causes  of  a  grave  nature. 
Deutsches  Staatsreoht.  p.  80. 

=  Leg.  Visig.  ii.  1.  §  23. 

'  -'  Hie  etenim  et  rex  illis  et  pontifex  ob  suam  peritiam  hahebatur, 
et  in  sua  iustitia  populos  iudicahat."    Jornandes. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  147 

but  even  render  it  permanent,  if  not  hereditary,  in 
his  own :  a  similar  process  may  take  place,  if  the 
priest  or  judge  be  one,  the  general  another,  of  the 
same  household.  We  may  conclude  that  the  regal 
power  grows  out  of  the  judicial  and  sacerdotal,  and 
that,  whether  the  military  skill  and  authority  be 
superadded  or  not,  Miig  is  only  another  name  for 
the  judge  of  a  small  circuit^.  It  is  only  when  many 
such  districts  have  been  combined,  when  many 
such  smaller  kings  have  been  subdued  by  one  more 
wise,  more  wealthy,  powerful  or  fortunate  than 
themselves,  that  the  complete  idea  of  the  German 
kingdom  developes  itself:  that  the  judicial,  military, 
and  even,  in  part,  the  priestly  powers  sink  into  a 
subordinate  position,  and  the  kingdom  represents 
the  whole  state,  the  freemen,  the  nobles,  and  the 
folcriht  or  public  law  of  both.  It  is  thus  that  the 
king  gains  the  ultimate  and  appellate  jurisdiction, 
the  right  of  punishment,  and  the  general  conser- 
vancy of  the  peace,  as  well  as  the  power  of  calling 
the  freemen  to  arms  (cyninges  ban,  cyninges  litware). 
When  this  process  has  taken  place  the  former  kings 
have  become  subreguU,  principes,  duces,  ealdormen  : 
they  retain  their  nobility,  their  original  purity  of 
blood,  their  influence  perhaps  over  their  people ; 
but  they  have  sunk  into  subordinate  officers  of  a 
state,  of  which  a  king  at  once  hereditary  and 
elective  is  the  head  2. 

'  "Nee  potest  aliquis  iudicare  in  temporalibus,  nisi  solus  rex  vel 
subdelegatus :  ipse  namque  ex  virtute  sacramenti  ad  hoc  specialiter 
otligatux,  et  ideo  corona  insignitur,  ut  per  indicia  populum  regat  sibi 
eubiectum."    Fleta,  lib.  i.  cap.  17.  §  1. 

'  "  Le  titre  de  roi  ^tait  primitivement  de  nulle  consequence  chez  les 

l2 


148  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

We  are  tolerably  familiar  with  the  fact  that  at 
least  eight  kingdoms  existed  at  once  in  Saxon  Eng- 
land ;  but  many  readers  of  English  history  have 
yet  to  learn  that  royalty  was  much  more  widely 
spread,  even  at  the  time  when  we  hear  but  of 
eight,'  seven  or  six  predominant  kings :  as  this  is 
a  point  of  some  interest,  a  few  examples  may  not 
be  amiss. 

It  is  probable  that  from  the  very  earliest  times 
Kent  had  at  least  two  kings,  whose  capitals  were 
respectively  Canterbury  and  Rochester,  the  seat  of 
two  bishoprics  ^.  The  distinction  of  East  and  West 
Kentings  is  preserved  till  the  very  downfall  of  the 
Saxon  monarchy  :  not  only  do  we  know  that  Ead- 
ric  and  Hlo^here  reigned  together ;  but  also  that 
Wihtred  and  his  son  ^^elberht  the  Second  did 
so  2.  O'swine  is  mentioned  as  a  king  of  Kent  du- 
ring the  period  when  our  general  authorities  tell 
us  of  Ecgberht  alone  ^ ;  contemporary  with  him  we 
have  Swsebheard,  another  king^,  and  all  these  ex- 
tend into  the  period  usually  given  to  Eadric  and 
Hlo^here.  The  later  years  of  iESelberht  the 
Second  must  have  seen  his  power  shared  with  Ead- 

barbares.  Ennodius,  6veque  de  Paris,  dit  d'une  arm^e  du  grand  Thd- 
odoric :  '  Ily  avail  tant  de  rois  dans  cette  armiSe,  que  leur  nombre  ^tait 
an  moins  ^gal  a  celui  des  soldats  qu'ou  pouvait  nourrir  avec  les  sub- 
sistances  exig^es  des  habitans  du  district  ou  elle  canapait.' "  Jlichelet, 
Hist.  France,  i.  198,  note. 

'  At  a  later  period  we  find  a  duchy  of  the  Merscware,  or  inhabit- 
ants of  Romney  marsh,  and  this  is  certainly  in  favour  of  a  third 
Kentish  kingdom.  William  of  Malmesbury  speaks  of  the  reguli  whom 
vESelberht  had  subdued,  and  it  is  probable  that  these  were  petty  princes 
of  Kent.     Gest.  Eeg.  lib.  1.  §  10. 

^  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  72,  77,  86,  108.  '  Ibid.  Nob.  8,  10,  30. 

*  Ibid.  Nos.  14,  15.     Beda,  Hist.  Eccl.  v.  8. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  149 

berht^,  Eardwulf^,  SigirHed^  and  Ecgberht*,  and  Si- 
girs^d  deliberately  calls  himself  king  of  half  Kent. 
A  very  remarkable  document  of  Eadbehrt  is  pre- 
served in  theTextus  Roffensis^;  after  the  king's  own 
signature,  in  which  he  calls  himself  Eex  Cantua- 
riorum,  his  nobles  place  their  names,  thus,  "Ego 
Wilbaldus  comites  meos  confirmare  et  subscribers 
feci :"  and  in  the  same  words  Dimheahac,  Hosberht, 
Nothbalth,  Banta,  Ruta  and  Tidbalth  sign.  Now 
the  fact  of  these  persons  having  comites  at  all  is 
only  conceivable  on  the  supposition  that  they  were 
all  royal,  kings  or  sub-kings.  That  they  were  sub- 
ordinate appears  from  the  necessity  of  the  grant 
being  confirmed  by  ^^elberht,  which  took  place 
in  presence  of  the  grantor  and  grantee,  and  the 
Archbishop,  at  Canterbury.  Among  the  kings  of 
this  small  province  are  also  named  Jj^^elric,  Heard- 
berht,  Eadberht  Pren^  and  Ealhmund'^,  the  last 
prince,  father  of  the  celebrated  Ecgberht  of  Wes- 
sex. 

Among  the  territories  which  at  one  time  or  other 
were  incorporated  with  the  kingdom  of  Mercia,  one 
is  celebrated  under  the  name  of  Hwiccas  :  it  com- 
prised the  then  diocese  of  Worcester.  This  small 
province  not  only  retained  its  king  till  a  late  period®, 
but  had   frequently  several  kings  at  once ;    thus 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  Noa.  85,  106,  107.         ^  Ibid.  No.  96. 

'  Ibid.  Nos.  110, 114.  "  Ibid.  Kos.  113,  132,  135, 160. 

'  Ibid.  No.  85.  «  Flor.  Wig.  an.  704. 

'  rior.  Wig.  App.  Wessex. 

^  We  lose  eight  of  the  Ilwiccian  kings  about  the  time  of  Offa's 
death,  or  an.  796.  In  802  we  hear  indeed  of  an  ealdorman  of  the 
Hwiccas,  but  the  Latin  authorities  translate  this  by  dtix. 


150  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

O'srici  and  O'shere^;  ^^elweard'^,  ^^elheard*, 
^^elric^  and  in  all  probability  O'swudu,  between 
an.  704-709.  A  few  years  later,  viz.  between  an. 
757  and  785,  we  find  three  brothers  Eanberht®, 
Ealdred^  and  Uhtred®  claiming  the  royal  title  in 
the  same  district,  while  Ofia  their  relative  swayed 
the  paramount  sceptre  of  Mercia.  That  other  parts 
of  that  great  kingdom  had  always  formed  separate 
states  is  certain :  even  in  the  time  of  Penda  (who 
reigned  from  626  to  656)  we  know  that  the  Middle 
Angles  were  ruled  by  Peada,  his  son^,  while  Mere- 
wald,  another  son,  was  king  of  the  West  Hecan  or 
people  of  Herefordshire^".  In  the  important  battle 
of  Winwidfeld,  where  the  fall  of  Penda  perhaps 
secured  the  triumph  of  Christianity,  we  learn  that 
thirty  royal  commanders  fell  on  the  Mercian  side^^ 
Under  ^^ilrsed,  Penda's  son  and  successor,  we 
find  Beorhtwald  calling  himself  a  king  in  Mercia  ^^. 
During  the  reign  of  Centwine  in  Wessex,  we  hear 
of  a  king,  Baldred,  whose  kingdom  probably  com- 

'  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  12.  ^  Ibid.  Noa.  17,  36. 

'  Ibid.  No.  56.  *  Ibid.  No.  53. 

»  Ibid.  No.  57.  '  Ibid.  Nos.  102,  105. 

'  Ibid.  Nos.  125,  131,  146.  «  Ibid.  Nos.  117,  118,  128, 148. 

'  Beda,  Hist.  Eccl.  iii.  21.  '"  Flor.  Wig.  App.  Mercia. 

'^  Beda,  Hist.  Eccl.  iii.  24.  "  Inito  ergo  certamine,  fugati  sunt  et 
caesi  pagani,  duces  regii  triginta  qui  ad  auxilium  venerant  pane  omnes 
interfecti."  The  Saxon  Chronicle  is  more  detailed;  an.  654:  "H& 
O'swiii  cyng  ofsloh  Pendau  cyng  on  Winwidfelda  and  Jjrfttig  cynebearna 
mid  him  ;  and  tS^r  weeron  sume  cyningas.  Dsera  sum  wees  ^ISelhere 
Annan  brdlSor,  Eastengla  cyningas." 

^^  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  26.  William  of  Malmesbury,  it  is  true,  says  of 
him,  "  Non  quidem  rex  potestats,  sed  subregulus  in  quadam  regni 
parte."  Vit.  Aldhelmi,  Ang.  Sacra,  ii.  10.  But  it  was  not  to  be  ex- 
pected that  Malmesbury  would  understand  such  a  royalty  as  Baldred's. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  151 

prised  Sussex  and  part  of  Hampshire  ^ ;  at  the  same 
period  also  we  find  ^Silheard  calling  himself  king 
of  Wessex^,  and  perhaps  also  a  brother  iE'Silweard  ^ 
unless  this  be  an  error  of  transcription.  FriSuwald 
in  a  charter  to  the  Monastery  of  Chertsey,  men- 
tions the  following  suhreguli  as  concurring  in  the 
grant :  O'sric,  Wighard  and  ^Selwald  *. 

There  was  a  kingdom  of  Elmet  in  Yorkshire, 
and  even  till  the  tenth  century  one  of  Bamborough. 
The  same  facts  might  easily  be  shown  of  Eastanglia^, 
Essex  and  Northumberland,  were  it  necessary; 
but  enough  seems  to  have  been  said  to  show  how 
numerously  peopled  with  kings  this  island,  always 
fertilis  tyrannorum^ ,  must  have  been  in  times  where 
of  history  has  no  record.  As  a  chronicler  of  the 
twelfth  century  has  very  justly  said,  "  Ea  tempes- 
tate  venerunt  multi  et  saepe  de  Germania,  et  oc- 
cupaverunt  Eastangle  et  Merce  sed  necdum  sub 
uno  rege  redacti  erant.  Plures  autem  proceres 
certatim  regiones  occupabant,  undo  innumerabilia 
bella  fiebant :  proceres  vero,  quia  multi  erafit,  no- 
mine carent^." 

From  all  that  has  preceded,  it  is  clear  that  by 
the  term  King  we  must  understand  something  very 
different  among  the  Anglosaxons  from  the  sense 

'  Will.  Malm.,  Ant.  Glast,  an.  681,  pp.  808,  309.  Cod.  Dipl. 
Noe.  20,  28,  71,  73. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  76.  '  Ibid.  No.  73.  «  Ibid.  No.  987. 

°  "Igitur  rex  unus  ibi  erat-  aliquando,  multi  aliquando  reguli." 
Henric.  Hunt.  lib.  T.  ''  Bex  autem  Eadmundus  ipsis  temporibus  reg- 
navit  super  omnia  regna  Eastanglorum."     Sim.  Dunelm.  an.  870. 

etcat  fie  Ka\  irokvdvQpamov  Trjv  vrftTOf .  . .  .^atrikets  re  Koi  dvvdaras 
TtoWoiis  ex""-     Diod.  Sic.  v.  21. 

'  Henric.  Hunt.  lib.  ii. 


152  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

which  we  attach  to  the  word  :  one  principal  diifer- 
ence  lies  indeed  in  this,  that  the  notion  of  territo- 
rial influence  is  never  for  a  single  moment  involved 
in  it.  The  kings  are  kings  of  tribes  and  peoples, 
but  never  of  the  land  they  occupy, — kings  of  the 
Westsaxons,  the  Mercians  or  the  Kentings,  but  not 
of  Wessex,  Mercia  or  Kent.  So  far  indeed  is  this 
from  being  the  case,  that  there  is  not  the  slight- 
est difficulty  in  forming  the  conception  of  a  king, 
totally  without  a  kingdom  : 

"  Solo  rex  verbo,  sociis  timen  imperitabat" ' 

is  a  much  more  general  description  than  the  writer 
of  the  line  imagined.  The  Norse  traditions  are  full 
of  similar  facts  ^.  The  king  is  in  truth  essentially 
one  with  the  people ;  from  among  them  he  springs, 
by  them  and  their  power  he  reigns ;  from  them  he 
receives  his  name ;  but  his  land  is  like  theirs,  pri- 
vate property ;  one  estate  does  not  owe  allegiance 
to  another,  as  in  the  feudal  system :  and  least  of 
all  is  -the  monstrous  fiction  admitted  even  for  a 
moment,  that  the  king  is  owner  of  all  the  land  in  a 
country. 

The  Teutonic  names  for  a  king  are  numerous 
and  various,  especially  in  the  language  of  poetry ; 
many  of  them  are  immediately  derived  from  the 
words  which  denote  the  aggregations  of  the  people 
themselves :  thus  from  J^eod,  we  have  the  Anglo- 
saxon  Jieoden;  from  folc,  the  Old  Norse  Fylkr; 
but  the  term  which,  among  all  the  Teutons,  pro- 

=  Abbo  de  BeUo  Paris.  Civit.    Pertz,  ii.  779. 

^  Langebek.  ii.  77.    DaUmann,  Gesch.  d.  Danen,  p.  51. 


OH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  ]53 

perly  denotes  this  dignity,  is  derived  from  the  fact 
which  Tacitus  notices,  viz.  the  nobility  of  the  king  : 
the  Anglosaxon  cyning  is  a  direct  derivative  from 
the  adjective  cyne,  generosus,  and  this  again  from 
cyn,  genus''-. 

The  main  distinction  between  the  king  and  the 
rest  of  the  people  lies  in  the  higher  value  set  upon 
his  life,  as  compared  with  theirs :  as  the  wergyld 
or  life-price  of  the  noble  exceeds  that  of  the  free- 
man or  the  slave,  so  does  the  life-price  of  the  king 
exceed  that  of  the  noble.  Like  all  the  people  he 
has  a  money  value,  but  it  is  a  greater  one  than  is 
enjoyed  by  any  other  person  in  the  state^.  So 
again  his  protection  (mund)  is  valued  higher  than 
that  of  any  other :  and  the  breach  of  his  peace 
(cyninges  handsealde  friS)  is  more  costly  to  the 
wrong-doer.  He  is  naturally  the  president  of  the 
Witena-gemot  and  the  ecclesiastical  synod,  and  the 
supreme  conservator  of  the  public  peace. 

To  the  king  belonged  the  right  of  calling  out  the 
national  levies,  the  posse  comitatus,  for  purposes  of 
attack  or  defence ;  the  privilege  of  recommending 
grave  causes  at  least  to  the  consideration  of  the 
tribunals ;  the  reception  of  a  certain  share  of  the 
fines  legally  inflicted  on  evil-doers,  and  of  voluntary 
gifts  from  the  free  men ;  and  as  a  natural  and  rapid 
consequence,  the  levy  of  taxes  and  the  appointment 
of  fiscal  officers.     Consonant  with  his  dignity  were 

'  The  Old  High  Dutch  word  ia  Chunino  ;  the  Old  Norse  Konungr  : 
the  Gothic  equivalent  has  not  heen  found,  but  certainly  was  Kuniggs. 

^  In  Kent,  Mercia  and  Wessex,  the  king's  wergyld  was  120  pounds  : 
half  belonged  to  his  family,  half  to  his  people. 


154  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  ceremonies  of  his  recognition  by  the  people,  and 
the  outward  marks  of  distinction  which  he  bore : 
immediately  upon  his  election  he  was  raised  upon 
a  shield  and  exhibited  to  the  multitude,  who  greeted 
him  with  acclamations^.  Even  in  heathen  times  it 
is  probable  that  some  religious  ceremony  accom- 
panied the  solemn  rite  of  election  and  installation : 
the  Christian  priesthood  soon  caused  the  ceremony 
of  anointing  the  new  king,  perhaps  as  head  of  the 
church,  to  be  looked  upon  as  a  necessary  part  of 
his  inauguration.  To  him  were  appropriated  the 
waggon  and  oxen  ^ ;  in  this  he  visited  the  several 
portions  of  his  kingdom,  traversed  the  roads,  and 
proclaimed  his  peace  upon  them  ;  and  I  am  inclined 
to  think,  solemnly  ascertained  and  defined  the  na- 
tional boundaries  ^,  —  a  duty  symbolical  in  some 
degree,  of  his  guardianship  of  the  private  bounda- 
ries. Among  all  the  tribes  there  appear  to  have 
been  some  outward  marks  of  royalty,  occasionally 
or  constantly  borne :  the  Merwingian  kings  were 
distinguished  by  their  long  and  flowing  hair*,  the 
Goths  by  a  fillet  or  cap;  among  the  Saxons  the 


^  "  Levatus  in  regem :  to  cvninge  ahafen,"  continued  to  be  the  words 
in  use,  long  after  the  custom  of  really  chairing  the  Hng  had  in  all  pro- 
hability  ceased  to  be  observed. 

"  The  ileiTvingian  kings  continued  to  use  this :  perhaps  not  the 
Carolings.     Among  the  Anglosaxons  I  find  no  trace  of  it. 

'  This  duty  of  riding  through  the  land,  called  by  Grimm  the  "landes 
bereisung''  (Deutsche  Rechtsalterthiimer,  p.  237),  is  probably  alluded 
to  by  Beda  in  his  account  of  Eadwine.     Hist.  Eccl.  ii.  16. 

■*  OefiiTov  yap  rois  ^atriK^vfTi  TOiV  ^pdyya>v  ovirainoTe  KelpfaBaty  ahX 
cLKeipeKop-oi  T€  elaiv  ex  Traidav  del,  Koi  TrapTjQyprjvTOL  avTois  aTravres  ev  paka 
CTTi  Tojv  aipuiv  01  liKoKapoi.  .  .  .rouTO  6e  SxjTTep  Ti  yi/aptapa  Koi  yepas 
i^aiperov  tw  ^airCkcla  ykvfi  avfiaBai.  vepopitrrai.     Agathias.  bk.  1.  4. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  155 

cynehelm,  or  cynebeah,  a  circle  of  gold,  was  in  use, 
and  worn  round  the  head.  In  the  Ding  or  popular 
council  he  bore  a  wand  or  staff:  in  wartime  he  was 
preceded  by  a  banner  or  flag.  The  most  precious 
however  of  all  the  royal  rights,  and  a  very  jewel 
in  the  crown,  was  the  power  to  entertain  a  comita- 
tus  or  collection  of  household  retainers,  a  subject 
to  be  discussed  in  a  subsequent  chapter. 

The  king,  like  all  other  freemen,  was  a  landed 
possessor,  and  depended  for  much  of  his  subsistence 
upon  the  cultivation  of  his  estates  ^.  In  various 
parts  of  the  country  he  held  lands  in  absolute  pro- 
perty, furnished  with  dwellings  and  storehouses,  in 
which  the  produce  of  his  farms  might  be  laid  up, 
and  from  one  to  another  of  which  he  proceeded, 
as  political  exigencies,  caprice,  or  the  consumption 
of  his  hoarded  stock  rendered  expedient.  In  each 
■\illa  or  wic  was  placed  a  bailiff,  riUicus,  wicgerefa, 
whose  business  it  was  to  watch  over  the  king's  in- 
terests, to  superintend  the  processes  of  husbandry, 
and  govern  the  labourers  employed  in  production  ; 
above  all  to  represent  the  king  as  regarded  the 
freemen  and  the  officers  of  the  county  court. 

'  "Deyictu  ex  regis  praediis."  "Disis  ^onne  sed  lihtingc  ISe  ic 
•wylle  eallon  folce  gebeorgan  '5e  hig  sfer  Syson  midgedrehte  ■wa&ron  ealles 
to  s-n-ySe.  Daet  is  Sonne  a^rost.  S.'et  ic  tebeode  eallum  niinan  ger^fan 
^8et  lii  on  mman  agenan  rihtlice  tilian  -j  me  mid  Sam  feormian.  -j  'Saet 
liim  nan  man  ne  >earf  to  feonnfultume  nan  >ingc  syllan  biitan  he  sylf 
wille.  And  gif  liTra  ajfter  Sam  wite  crafige  beo  he  his  weres  scyldig 
wis  5one  cyningc."  Cuut,  §  Ixx.  Thorpe,  i.  412,  413.  "  I  command 
all  my  reeves  that  they  justly  provide  [for  me]  out  of  my  own  pro- 
pert}-,  and  maintain  me  therewith ;  and  that  no  man  need  give  me 
anything  as  farm-aid  (feormfultum)  naless  he  himself  be  •willing.'' 
We  here  ■witness  the  natural  progress  of  oppression. 


156  TPIE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

The  lot,  share,  or,  as  we  may  call  it,  refievoc  of 
the  king,  though  thus  divided,  was  extensive,  and 
comprised  many  times  the  share  of  the  freeman. 
We  may  imagine  that  it  originally,  and  under  or- 
dinary circumstances  would  be  calculated  upon  the 
same  footing  as  the  wergyld  ;  that  if  the  life  of  the 
king  was  seventy-two  times  as  valuable  as  that  of 
the  ceorl,  his  land  would  be  seventy-two  times  as 
large ;  if  the  one  owned  thirty,  the  other  would 
enjoy  2160  acres  of  arable  land.  But  the  comi- 
tatus  offers  a  disturbing  force,  which,  it  will  here- 
after be  seen,  renders  this  sort  of  calculation  nuga- 
tory in  practice  ;  and  the  experience  of  later  periods 
clearly  proves  the  king  to  have  been  a  landowner 
in  a  very  disproportionate  degree.  In  addition  to 
the  produce  of  his  own  lands,  however,  the  king 
was  entitled  to  expect  voluntary  gifts-  in  kind, 
naturalia,  from  the  people,  which  are  not  only  di- 
stinctly stated  by  Tacitus^  to  have  been  so  given, 
but  are  frequently  referred  to  by  early  continental 
historians 2.  In  process  of  time,  when  these  volun- 
tary gifts  had  been  converted  into  settled  payments 
or  taxes,  further  voluntary  aids  were  demanded, 
upon  the  visit  of  a  king  to  a  town  or  country,  the 

^  "  Mos  est  civitatibus,  ultro  ac  viritim  conferre  prinoipibus,  vel  ar- 
mentorum,  vel  frugum,  quod  pro  bonore  acceptum,  etiam  neoessitatibua 
subvenit.  Gaudentpraecipue  tinitimarum gentium  doni8,quaenon  mode 
a  singulis,  sed  publice  mittuntur :  electi  equi,  magna  arma,  pbalerae, 
torquesque.    lametpecuniam  accipere  docuimu3."  Germ,  x v. 

^  "  In  die  autem  Martis  campo  secundum  antiquam  cpnsuetudinem 
dona  illis  regibus  a  populo  otferebantur,  et  ipse  rex  sedebat  in  sella 
regia,  oircumstante  exeroitu,  et  maior  domus  coram  eo."  an.  753.  Annal. 
Laurisbamenses  Minores  (Pertz,  Monumenta,  i.  116).  See  otber  in- 
stances in  Grimm's  Deutsche  Rechtsaltertbiimer,  p.  245,  etc. 


CH.  VI.]  TfJE  KING.  157 

marriage  of  a  princess,  or  of  the  king  himself,  and 
other  public  and  solemn  occasions  ;  from  which  in 
feudal  times  arose  the  custom  of  demanding  aids 
from  the  tenants  to  knight  the  lord's  son  or  marry 
his  daughter. 

Another  source  of  the  royal  revenue  was  a  share 
of  the  booty  taken  in  war,  where  the  king  and  the 
freemen  served  together.  The  celebrated  story  of 
Clovis  and  the  Soissons  vase  ^,  proves  that  the  king 
received  his  portion  by  lot,  as  did  the  rest  of  his 
army;  but  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  his 
share  as  much  exceeded  that  of  his  comrades,  as 
his  wergyld  and  landed  possessions  were  greater 
than  theirs. 

As  conservator  of  the  public  peace,  the  king  was 
entitled  to  a  portion  of  the  fines  inflicted  on  cri- 
minals, and  the  words  in  which  Tacitus  mentions 
this  fact  show  that  he  was  in  this  function  the  re- 
presentative of  the  whole  state  ^ :  it  is  a  prerogative 
derived  from  his  executive  power.  And  similar  to 
this  is  his  right  to  the  forfeited  lands  of  felons, 
which,  if  they  were  to  be  forfeited,  could  hardly  be 
placed  in  other  hands  than  those  of  the  king,  as 
representative  of  the  whole  state  ^. 

1  Greg.  Turon.  ii.  27. 

'  "  Sed  et  levioribua  delictis,  pro  modo  poenarum,  equorum  pecorum- 
que  nuiaero  convicti  midtantur,  pars  multae  regi  vel  civitati,  pars  ipsi 
qui  Tindicatur  vel  propinquis  eius  exsolvitur."     Germ.  xii. 

'  "  TJnam  mansam  quam  fur  quidam  ante  possederat,  a  rege  cum 
triginta  mancusis  auri  emit."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  580.  Bishop  Denewulf 
had  leased  lands  to  a  relative  named  iElfred,  for  a  fixed  rent.  "  Is 
equidem  insipiens  adulterans  stuprum,  propriam  religiose  pactatam 
abominans,  scortum  diligens,  libidinose  commisit.  Quo  reatu  omni 
substantia  peculiali  recte  privatus  est,  et  praefatum  rus  ab  eo  aba- 


158  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

In  proportion  as  this  idea  gains  ground,  the  in- 
fluence of  the  king  in  every  detail  of  public  life 
necessarily  increases,  and  the  regalia  or  royal  rights 
become  more  varied  and  numerous :  he  is  looked 
upon  as  the  protector  of  the  stranger,  who  has  no 
other  natural  guardian,  inasmuch  as  no  stranger 
can  be  a  member  of  any  of  those  associations  which 
are  the  guarantee  of  the  freeman.  He  has  the  sole 
right  of  settling  the  value  and  form  of  the  medium 
of  exchange :  through  his  power  of  calling  out  the 
armed  force,  he  obtains  rights  which  can  only  con- 
sist with  martial  law, — even  the  right  of  life  and 
death^ :  the  justice  of  the  whole  country  flows  from 
him :  the  establishment  of  fiscal  officers  dependent 

tractum  rex  huius  patriae  suae  ditioni  a-sidus  devenire  iniuste  optavit." 
Cod.  Dipl.  No.  601.  The  injustice  complained  of  is  in  the  king's  seizing 
lands  that  were  really  not  the  offender's  :  but  so  strong  was  the  king's 
right,  that  the  church  was  obliged  to  buy  back  its  own  land  for  one 
hundred  and  twenty  mancusses  of  gold.  That  these  forfeitures  resulted 
from  a  solemn  judicial  act  admits  of  no  doubt.  In  1002,  a  lady  who 
owned  lands  was  found  guilty  of  certain  acts,  her  lands  were  forfeited, 
and  made  over  to  the  king,  in  the  language  of  the  instrument,  "  vulgari 
traditione."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1290.  In  938  ^tSelstan  gave  seven  hides  of 
land  to  the  church  at  Winchester :  "  istarum  autem  vii  mansarum  quan- 
titas  iusto  valde  iudicio  totius  popvili,  seniorum  et  primatum,  ablata  f uit 
ab  eis  qui  eorum  possessores  fuerunt,  quia  apertocrimine  furti  usque  ad 
mortem  obnoxii  inventi  sunt ;  ideoque  decretum  est  ab  omni  populo  ut 
libri  illorum,  quos  ad  has  terras  habebant,  aetemaliter  dampnarentur," 
etc.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  374.  ^ESelsige  stole  .^ISelwine's  swine :  his  land  at 
Dumbleton  was  accordingly  forfeited  to  the  king.  "  ■j  man  ger^hte 
^©ebede  cyninge  'Sset  land  -j  dehta."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  692.  The  law  of 
the  Ripuarian  Franks  seems  to  have  been  somewhat  different:  see  Tit. 
§  Ixxix.  de  homine  penduto  et  eius  hereditate  ;  and  Eichhom,  i.  269. 
'  I  may  again  refer  to  the  story  of  the  vase  at  Soissons.  Clovis  put  the 
soldier  to  death  on  pretext  of  a  breach  of  discipline  ;  in  reality,  because 
the  man  had  opposed  him  with  respect  to  the  booty.  But,  except  in  the 
field,  it  is  not  to  be  imagined  that  Clovis  could  have  taken  his  life  ;  and 
certainly  not  without  a  legal  conviction  and  condemnation  by  the  people. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  159 

upon  himself  places  the  private  possessions  of  the 
freeman  at  his  disposal.  The  peculiar  conservancy 
of  the  peace,  and  command  over  the  means  of  in- 
ternal communication  enable  him  to  impose  tolls 
on  land-  and  water-carriage :  he  is  thus  also  em- 
powered to  demand  the  services  of  the  freemen  to 
receive  and  conduct  travelling  strangers,  heralds  or 
ambassadors  from  one  royal  vill  to  another ;  to  de- 
mand the  aid  of  their  carts  and  horses  to  carry 
forage,  provisions  or  building-materials  to  his  royal 
residence.  Treasure-trove  is  his,  because  where 
there  is  no  owner,  the  state  claims  the  accidental 
advantage,  and  the  king  is  the  representative  of 
the  state.  It  is  part  of  his  dignity  that  he  may 
command  the  aid  of  the  freemen  in  his  hunting 
and  fishing ;  and  hence  that  he  may  compel  them 
to  keep  his  hawks  and  hounds,  and  harbour  or 
feed  his  huntsmen.  As  head  of  the  chiuxh  he  has 
an  important  influence  in  the  election  of  bishops, 
even  in  the  establishment  of  new  sees,  or  the  aboli- 
tion of  old  established  ones.  His  authority  it  is 
that  appoints  the  duke,  the  gerefa,  perhaps  even 
the  members  of  the  Witena-gemot.  Above  all,  he 
has  the  right  to  divest  himself  of  a  portion  of  these 
attributes,  and  confer  them  upon  those  whom  he 
pleases,  in  different  districts. 

The  complete  description  of  the  rights  of  Royalty, 
in  all  their  detail,  will  find  a  place  in  the  Second 
Book  of  this  work ;  they  can  only  be  noticed  cur- 
sorily here,  inasmuch  as  they  appertain,  in  strict- 
ness, to  a  period  in  which  the  monarchical  spirit,  and 
the  institutions  proper  thereto,  had  become  firmly 


100  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENQ  LAN  I).  [nooic  i. 

settled,  and  applied  to  every  i)art  of  our  social 
scheme.  But  whatever  extension  they  may  have 
attained  in  process  of  time,  they  have  their  orif)in 
in  the  rights  permitted  to  the  king,  even  in  the  re- 
motest periods  of  which  we  read. 

There  cannot  be  the  least  doubt  that  many  of 
them  were  usurpations,  gradual  developments  of  an 
old  and  simple  principle  ;  and  it  is  only  in  periods 
of  advanced  civilization  that  we  find  them  alluded 
to.  Nevertheless  we  must  admit  that  even  at  the 
earliest  recorded  time  in  our  history,  the  kings 
were  not  only  wealthy  but  powerful  far  beyond  any 
of  their  fellow-countrymen.  All  intercourse  with 
foreign  nations,  whether  warlike  or  peaceful,  tends 
to  this  result,  because  treaties  and  grave  affairs  of 
state  can  best  be  negotiated  and  managed  by  single 
persons :  a  popular  council  may  be  very  properly 
consulted  as  to  the  final  acceptance  or  rejection  of 
terms;  but  the  settlement  of  them  can  obviously 
not  be  beneficially  conducted  by  so  unwieldy  a 
multitude.  Moreover  contracting  parties  on  either 
side  will  prefer  having  to  do  with  as  small  a  num- 
ber of  negotiators  as  possible,  if  it  be  only  for  tlie 
greater  dispatch  of  businc.ss.  Accordingly  'Jacitus 
shows  us,  on  more  than  one  occasion,  th(;  ScHute 
in  communication  with  the  princes,  not  the  pojju- 
lations  of  Germany  i :  and  this  must  naturally  be 
the  case  where  the  aristocracy,  to  wlnjse  body  the 

'  "  Adgandestrii,  principis  Cattorum,  lectas  in  Senatu  litoras."  A  nnal. 
ii.  88.  "Marobodiium.  .  .  .per  dona  et  legationes  pi;tivis8e  fouilufl." 
Annal.  ii.  45.  "  Misitquo  legates  ad  Tiberium  oraluros  auxilia," 
Ibid. 


CH.  VI.]  THE  KING.  161 

king  belongs,  have  the  right  of  taking  the  initiative 
in  public  business  \ 

But  although  we  find  a  great  difference  in  the 
social  position,  wealth  and  power  of  the  king,  and 
those  of  the  noble  and  freeman,  we  are  not  to  ima- 
gine that  he  could  at  any  time  exercise  his  royal 
prerogatives  entirely  at  his  royal  pleasure^:  held  in 
check  by  the  universal  love  of  liberty,  by  the  rights 
of  his  fellow  nobles,  and  the  defensive  alliances  of 
the  freemen^,  he  enjoyed  indeed  a  rank,  a  splendour 
and  an  influence  which  placed  him  at  the  head  of 
his  people, — a  limited  monarchy,  but  happier  than 
a  capricious  autocracy :  and  the  historian  who  had 
groaned  over  the  vices  and  tyranny  of  Tiberius, 
Nero  and  Domitian,  could  give  the  noble  boon  of 
his  testimony  to  the  eternal  memory  of  the  har- 
harous  Arminius. 

'  "  De  minoribus  rebiia  principea  consultant ;  de  maioribus  omnes : 
ita  tomen,  iit  ea  quoque,  quorum  penes  plebem  arbitrium  est,  apud 

principes  perti'actentur Mox  rex  vel  princeps,  prout  aetas  ouique, 

prout  nobilitas,  prout  decus  bellorum,  prout  faoundia  est,  audiuntur, 
auctoritate  suadendi  magis  quam  iubendi  potestate."     Mor.  Germ.  xi. 

'^  "  Nee regibusinfinita,  nee  libera potestas."  Mor.  Germ.  vii.  "Auc- 
tore  ^'elTito  et  Malorige,  qui  nationem  eam  regebant,  in  quantum  Ger- 
mani  regnantur."    Tac.  Annal.  xiii.  54. 

'  "  Ceterum  Arminius,  abscedentibus  Eomanis  ct  pulso  Maroboduo, 
regnum  adfectans,  libertatem  popularium  adversam  habuit,  petitusque 
arniis,  cum  varia  fortuna  certaret,  dolo  propinquorum  cecidit."  Tac. 
Annal.  ii.  88. 


VOL.  I  J] 


162 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE. 

I  HAVE  called  the  right  to  entertain  a  Comiiatus, 
or  body  of  household  retainers,  a  very  jewel  in  the 
crown :  it  was  so  because  it  formed,  in  process  of 
time,  the  foundation  of  all  the  extended  powers 
which  became  the  attributes  of  royalty,  and  finally 
succeeded  in  establishing,  upon  the  downfall  of  the 
old  dynasts  or  nobles  by  birth,  a  new  order  of  nobles 
by  service,  whose  root  was  in  the  crown  itself.  A 
close  investigation  of  its  gradual  rise,  progress  and 
ultimate  development.  Will  show  that  the  natural 
basis  of  the  Comitatus  is  in  the  superior  wealth  and 
large  possessions  of  the  prince. 

In  all  ages  of  the  world,  and  under  all  condi- 
tions of  society,  one  profound  problem  has  pre- 
sented itself  for  solution  ;  viz.  how  to  reconcile  the 
established  divisions  of  property  with  the  necessities 
of  increasing  population.  Experience  teaches  us 
that  under  almost  any  circumstances  of  social  being, 
a  body  of  men  possessed  of  sufficient  food  and 
clothing  have  been  found  to  increase  and  multiply 
with  a  rapidity  far  too  great  to  be  balanced  by  the 
number  of  natural  or  violent  deaths :  and  it  follows 
therefore  that  in  every  nation  which  has  established 


CH.  VII.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  163 

a  settled  number  of  households  upon  several  estates, 
each  capable  of  supporting  but  one  household  iu 
comfort,  the  means  of  providing  for  a  surplus  po- 
pulation must  very  soon  become  an  object  of  gene- 
ral difficulty.  If  the  paternal  estate  be  reserved  for 
the  support  of  one  son,  if  the  paternal  weapons 
descend  to  him,  to  be  used  in  the  feuds  of  his  house 
or  the  service  of  the  state,  what  is  to  become  of  the 
other  sons  who  are  excluded  from  the  benefits  of 
the  succession  1  In  a  few  instances  we  may  ima- 
gine natural  affection  to  have  induced  a  painful,  and 
ultimately  unsuccessful,  struggle  to  keep  the  family 
together :  here  and  there  cases  may  have  occurred 
in  which  a  community  was  fortunate  enough  from 
its  position,  to  possess  the  means  of  creating  new 
estates  to  suit  the  new  demand :  and  conquest,  or 
the  forcible  partition  of  a  neighbouring  territory, 
may  have  supplied  a  provision  for  the  new  gene- 
ration. Tacitus  indeed  tells  us^  that  "  numerum 
liberorum  finire  aut  quemquam  ex  agnatis  necare, 
flagitium  habetur : "  yet  tradition  contradicts  this, 
and  speaks  of  the  exposure  of  children  immediately 
after  birth,  leaving  it  to  the  will  of  the  father  to 
save  the  life  of  the  child  or  not^.  And  similarly 
the  tales  of  the  North  record  the  solemn  and  vo- 
luntary expatriation  of  a  certain  proportion  of  the 
people,  designated  by  lot,  at  certain  intervals  of 
time^.     However,  in  the  natural  course  of  things, 

'  Mor.  Germ.  xix.  '  Grimm,  Eeclitsalt.  p.  455. 

'  "  Oumque,  ut  dixi,  sive  parum  compluta  humo,  seu  nimium  tomda, 
torpentibua  satis,  ac  parce  fruotiiicantibus  campis,  inediae  languor  de- 
fectam  escis  regionem  attereret,  nullumque,  parum  suppetentibus  ali- 

M  2 


164  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

he  who  cannot  find  subsistence  at  home  must  seek 
it  abroad ;  if  the  family  estate  will  not  supply  him 
with  support,  he  must  strive  to  obtain  it  from  the 
bounty  or  necessities  of  others :  for  emigration  has 
its  own  heavy  charges,  and  for  this  he  would  re- 
quire "assistance ;  and  in  a  period  such  as  we  are  de- 
scribing, trade  and  manufacture  offer  no  resources 
to  the  surplus  population.    But  all  the  single  hides 
or  estates  are  here  considered  as  included  in  the 
same  category,  and  it  is  only  on  the  large  posses- 
sions of  the  noble  that  the  poor  freeman  can  hope 
to  live,  without  utterly  forfeiting  everything  that 
makes  life  valuable.     Some  sort  of  service  he  must 
yield,  and  among  all  that   he  can  offer,  military 
service,    the   most   honourable    and   attractive   to 
himself,  is  sure  to  be  the  most  acceptable  to  the 
lord  whose  protection  he  requires. 

The  temptation  to  engage  in  distant  or  dangerous 
warlike  adventures  may  not  appear  very  great  to 
the  agricultural  settler,  whose  continuous  labour 
will  only  wring  a  mere  sufficiency  from  the  soil  he 
owns.  It  is  with  regret  and  reluctance  that  such 
a  man  will  desert  the  land  he  has  prepared  or 
the  crops  he  has  raised,  even  when  the  necessity 


mentis,  trahendae  famis  superesset  auxilium,  Aggone  atque  Ebbone 
auctoribus,  plebiscite  provisum  est,  ut  senibus  et  parvulis  caesis,  om- 
nique  demum  imbelli  aetate  regno  egesta,  robustis  duntaxat  patiia 
donaretur;  neo  nisi  autarmis,  autagris  colendis  habiles  domestici  laris 
paternorumque  penatium  tabitaciila  retinerent."  By  the  advice  how- 
ever of  Gambara,  they  cast  lots,  and  a  portion  of  the  people  emigrate. 
"  Igitur  omnium  fortunis  in  sortem  coniectis,  qui  designabantur,  ex- 
torres  adiudicati  sunt."  Saxo  Gram.  p.  159.  Under  similar  circum- 
stances, according  to  Geoifiy  of  Monmouth,  Hengest  came  to  Britain. 


CH.  VII.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SEEVICE.  165 

of  self-defence  calls  the  community  to  arms,  far 
otherwise  however  is  it  with  him  who  has  no  means 
of  living  by  the  land,  or  whom  his  means  place 
above  the  necessity  of  careful,  unremitting  toil.  The 
prince,  enriched  by  the  contributions  of  his  fel- 
low-countrymen, and  the  presents  of  neighbouring 
states  or  dynasts,  as  well  as  master  of  more  land  than 
he  requires  for  his  own  subsistence,  has  leisure  for 
ambition,  and  power  to  reward  its  instruments.  On 
the  land  which  he  does  not  require  for  his  own 
cultivation,  he  can  permit  the  residence  of  freemen 
or  even  serfs,  on  such  conditions  as  may  seem  ex- 
pedient to  himself  or  endurable  to  them.  He  may 
surround  himself  with  armed  and  noble  retainers, 
attracted  by  his  liberality  or  his  civil  and  military 
reputation  S  whom  he  feeds  at  his  own  table  and 
houses  under  his  own  roof;  who  may  perform  even 
servile  duties  in  his  household,  and  on  whose  aid 
he  may  calculate  for  purposes  of  aggression  or  de- 
fence. Nor  does  it  seem  probable  that  a  community 
would  at  once  discover  the  infinite  danger  to  them- 
selves that  lurks  in  such  an  institution:  far  more 
frequently  must  it  have  seemed  matter  of  congra- 
tulation to  the  cultivator,  that  its  existence  spared 
him  the  necessity  of  leaving  the  plough  and  harrow 
to  resist  sudden  incursions,  or  enforce  measures  of 
internal  police ;  or  that  the  strong  castle  with  its 

'  "  Erat  autem  rex  Oswini  et  aspectu  venustus,  et  statura  sublimis, 
et  affatu  iucundus,  et  moribus  civilis,  et  manu  omnibus,  id  est  nobi- 
libus  simul  atque  igiiobilibus,  largus  :  unde  contigit  ut  ob  regiam  eiiis  et 
auimi,  et  vultus,  et  meritoriim  dignitatem,  ab  omnibus  diligeretur,  et 
undique  ad  eius  ministerium  de  cunotis  prope  provinciis  viri  etiam 
nobilissimi  concurrerent."     Bed.  H.  E.  iii.  14. 


166  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

band  of  ever-watchfal  defenders,  existed  as  a  gar- 
rison near  the  disputable  boundary  of  the  Mark. 

The  Germania  of  Tacitus  supplies  us  with  a  de- 
tailed account  of  the  institution  of  the  Comitatus, 
which  receives  strong  confirmation  on  every  point 
from  what  we  gather  from  other  authentic  sources. 
In  his  own  words  : — 

"  Illustrious  birth  or  the  great  services  of  their 
fathers  give  the  rank  of  princes  even  to  young 
men :  they  are  associated  with  the  rest  who  have 
already  made  proof  of  their  greater  powers.  Nor  is 
there  any  shame  in  appearing  among  the  comites^. 
Moreover,  the  Comitatus  itself  has  its  grades,  ac- 
cording to  the  judgment  of  him  they  follow ;  and 
great  is  the  emulation  among  the  comites,  as  to 
who  shall  hold  the  highest  place  in  the  estimation 
of  the  prince,  and  among  the  princes,  as  to  who 
shall  have  the  most  numerous  and  the  bravest 
comites.  This  is  dignity,  this  is  power,  to  be  ever 
surrounded  with  a  troop  of  chosen  youths,  a  glory 
in  time  of  peace,  and  a  support  in  war.  Nor  is  it 
only  in  their  own  tribe,  but  in  the  neighbouring 
states  as  well,  a  name  and  glory,  to  be  distinguished 
for  the  number  and  valour  of  the  comitatus;  for 
they  are  courted  with  embassies,  and  adorned  with 
presents,  and  keep  oif  wars  by  their  very  reputa- 
tion. When  it  comes  to  fighting,  it  is  dishonour- 
able for  the  prince  to  be  excelled  in  valour,  for  the 
comitatus  not  to  equal  the  valour  of  the  prince; 
but  infamous,  and  a  reproach  throughout  life,  to 

^  This  very  assertion  proves  that  the  position  of  the  comes  was,  in 
elf,  inferior  to  that  of  the  freeman. 


CH.  vii.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  167 

return  from  battle  the  survivor  of  the  prince.  To 
defend  and  protect  him,  to  reckon  to  his  glory  even 
one's  own  brave  deeds,  this  is  the  first  and  holiest 
duty.  The  princes  fight  for  victory,  the  comites 
for  the  prince.  If  the  state  in  vphich  they  spring  is 
torpid  with  long  peace  and  ease,  the  most  of  these 
young  nobles  voluntarily  seek  such  nations  as  may 
he  engaged  in  war,  partly  because  inaction  does 
not  please  this  race,  partly  because  distinction  is 
more  easy  of  attainment  under  difficulties.  Nor 
can  you  keep  together  a  great  comitatus,  save  by 
violence  and  war  :  since  it  is  from  the  liberality  of 
the  prince  that  they  exact  that  war-horse,  that 
bloody  and  victorious  lance.  For  feasts  and  meals, 
ample  though  rude,  take  the  place  of  pay.  Wars 
and  plunder  supply  the  means  of  munificence ;  nor 
will  you  so  readily  persuade  them  to  plough  the 
land  or  wait  with  patience  for  the  year,  as  to  chal- 
lenge enemies  and  earn  wounds ;  seeing  that  it 
seems  dull  and  lazy  to  acquire  with  sweat  what 
you  may  win  with  blood  i." 

It  would  be  difficult  in  a  few  lines  to  give  any- 
thing like  so  clear  and  admirable  an  account  of  the 
peculiarities  of  the  Comitatus,  as  Tacitus  has  left 
us  in  this  vigorous  sketch  ;  and  little  remains  but  to 
show  how  his  view  is  confirmed  by  other  sources 
of  information,  and  to  draw  the  conclusions  which 
naturally  result  from  these  premises. 

To  the  influence  and  operation  of  these  associa- 
tions are  justly  attributed  not  only  the  conquests  of 
the  various  tribes,  but  the  most  important  modifi- 

^  Mor.  Germ.  xiii.  liy. 


168  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

cations  in  the  law  of  the  people.  As  the  proper 
name  for  the  freeman  is  ceorl,  and  for  the  born-noble 
eorl,  so  is  the  true  word  for  the  comes,  or  comrade, 
gesl'S.  This  is  in  close  etymological  connection  with 
si^,  a  journey,  and  literally  denotes  one  who  ac- 
companies another.  The  functions  and  social  po- 
sition of  the  gesi^  led  however  to  another  appella- 
tion :  in  this  peculiar  relation  to  the  prince,  he  is 
jjegn,  a  thane,  strictly  and  originally  a  servant  or 
minister,  and  only  noble  when  the  service  of  royalty 
had  shed  a  light  upon  dependence  and  imperfect 
freedom.  Beowulf  describes  himself  as  the  relative 
and  thane  of  Hygelac :  but  his  royal  blood  and  tried 
valour  make  him  also  the  head  of  a  comitatus,  and 
he  visits  Heort  with  a  selected  band  of  his  own 
comrades,  swsese  gesi'Sas:  they,  like  himself,  be- 
long however  to  his  lord,  and  are  described  as  Hy- 
gelac's  beodgeneatas,  heor^geneatas  (tischgenossen, 
heerdgenossen),  sharers  in  the  monarch's  table  and 
hearth.  A  portion  of  the  booty  taken  in  war  na- 
turally became  the  property  of  the  gesi^as ;  this 
almost  follows  from  the  words  of  Tacitus;  and 
Saxo  Grammaticus,  who  in  this  undoubtedly  ex- 
presses a  genuine  fact,  although  after  a  peculiar 
fashion  of  his  own,  says  of  one  of  his  heroes  i, 
"  Proceres  non  solum  domesticis  stipendiis  cole- 
bat,  sed  etiam  spoliis  ex  hoste  quaesitis :  affirmare 
solitus,  pecuniam  ad  milites,  gloriam  ad  ducem  re- 
dundare  debere."  And  again 2,  "  Horum  omnium 
clientelam  rex  liberal!  familiaritate  coluerat.  Nam 
primis  apud  eum  honoribus,  habitum,  cultos  auro 

'  Hist.  Dan.  p.  6.  ^  jy^  p  ^44 


CH.  vn.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  169 

gladios,  opimaque  bellorum  praemia  perceperunt." 
Thus  also  Hialto  sings  ^ 

"  Dulce  est  nos  domino  percepta  rependere  dona, 
Acoeptare  enses,  famaeque  impendere  ferrum. 

Enses  theutohici,  galeae,  armillaeque  nitentes, 
Lorieae  talo  immisaae,  quas  eontulit  olim 
RoIto  suis,  memores  aouant  in  praelia  mentes. 
Res  petit,  et  par  est,  q[u.aecumque  per  otia  sunima 
Naoti  pace  sumus,  belli  ditione  mereri." 

The  same  amusing  author  tells  us^  how  on  some 
occasion,  in  consequence  of  there  being  no  queen  in 
a  court,  the  comites  were  ill  supplied  with  clothes, 
a  difficulty  which  they  could  only  provide  against 
by  inducing  their  king  to  marry :  "  Igitur  contu- 
bernales  Frothonis  circa  indumentorum  usum  fe- 
minea  admodum  ope  defecti,  quum  non  haberent 
unde  nova  assuere,  aut  lacera  reficere  possent, 
regem  celebrandi  coniugii  monitis  adhortantur." 
There  seems  no  reason  to  doubt  the  fact  thus  re- 
corded, however  we  may  judge  respecting  its  oc- 
currence in  the  time  of  Frotho.  Similarly  when 
Siegfried  set  out  upon  his  fatal  marriage  expedition 
into  Burgundy,  he  and  his  twelve  comrades  were 
clothed  by  the  care  of  the  royal  Siglint^.  From  this 
relation  between  the  prince  and  the  comites,  are 
derived  the  names  appropriated  to  the  former  in 
the  epopoea,  of  hlaford,  lord,  literally  hread-giver : 
sinces  brytta,  beaga  brytta,  distributor  of  treasure, 
rings ;  siucgifa,  treasure-giver,  and  the  like.  It  is 
clear  also  that  a  right  to  any  share  in  the  booty 
could  not  be  claimed  by  the  gesi'S,  as  it  undoubt- 

'  Sax.  Gram.  Hist.  Dan.  p.  33.  ^  Hist.  Dan.  p.  68. 

'  Nibelunge  Not.  66.  p.  10,  LacLmann. 


170  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [booki. 

edly  could  by  the  free  soldier  in  the  Hereban,  but 
depended  entirely  upon  the  will  of  the  chief,  and 
his  notions  of  policy :  a  right  could  not  have  been 
described  as  the  result  of  his  liberality.  In  the 
historical  time  of  Charlemagne  we  have  evidence  of 
this^ :  "Quo  accepto  ....  idem  vir  prudentissimus 
idque  largissimus  et  Dei  dispensator  magnam  inde 
partem  Eomam  ad  limina  Apostolorum  misit  per 
Angilbertum  dilectum  abbatem  suum ;  porro  reli- 
quam  partem  obtimatibus,  clericis  sive  laicis,  cae- 
terisque  fidelibus  suis  largitus  est : "  or,  as  it  is 
still  more  clearly  expressed  in  the  annals  of  Egin- 
hart^,  "  reliquum  vero  inter  optimates  et  aulicos, 
caeterosque  in  palatio  suo  militantes,  liberali  manu 
distribuit."  And  similarly  we  are  told  of  ^^el- 
stan :  "  Praeda  quae  in  castro  reperta  fuerat,  et  ea 
quidem  amplissima,  magnifice  et  viritim  divisa. 
Hoc  enim  vir  ille  animo  imperaverat  suo,  ut  nihil 
opum  ad  crumenas  corraderet ;  sed  omnia  conqui- 
sita,  vel  monasteriis,  vel  fidelibus  suis,  munificus  ex- 
penderet^."  The  share  of  the  freeman  who  served 
under  his  gerefa,  and  not  under  a  lord,  M'as  his  own 
by  lot,  and  neither  by  largitio  nor  liberalitas, — a 
most  important  distinction,  seeing  that  where  all 
was  left  to  the  arbitrary  disposition  of  the  chief, 
the  subservience  of  the  follower  would  very  natu- 
rally become  the  measure  of  his  liberality. 

The  relation  of  the  Comites  was  one  of  fealty: 
it  was  undertaken  in   the  most   solemn   manner, 

^  Annal.  Lauri&h.  an.  796.     Pertz,  Mon.  Germ.  i.  182. 

=  An.  796.     Pertz,  i.  183. 

^  WiU.  Malm.  Gest.  Reg.  i.  213,  §  134. 


CH.  VII.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  171 

and  with  appropriate,  symbolic  ceremonies,  out  of 
which,  in  later  times,  sprung  homage  and  the 
other  incidents  of  feudality.  All  history  proves 
that  it  was  of  the  most  intimate  nature ;  that  even 
life  itself  was  to  be  sacrificed  without  hesitation  if 
the  safety  of  the  prince  demanded  it :  the  gesi'Sas 
of  Beowulf  expose  themselves  with  him  to  the  at- 
tack of  the  fiendish  Grendel  ^ ;  Wiglaf  risks  his  own 
life  to  assist  his  lord  and  relative  in  his  fatal  con- 
test with  the  firedrake^;  and  the  solemn  denuncia- 
tion which  he  pronounces  against  the  remaining 
comites  who  neglected  this  duty,  recalls  the  words 
of  Tacitus,  and  the  infamy  that  attached  to  the  sur- 
vivors of  their  chief  ^: 

Hii  sceal  sinc))ego  How  shall  tlie  service  of  treasure 

and  swyrdgyfu,  and  tlie  gift  of  swords, 

eaU  SSelwyn,  all  joy  of  a  paternal  inheritance, 

eowrum  oynne  [all]  support  fail 

lufen  alicgean  :  your  Mn  : 

londrihtes  mot  of  the  rights  of  citizenship  must 

■S&e  mSeghurge  of  your  family 

monna  ^ghwilc  every  one 

idel  hweorfan,  go  about  deprived, 

si^iSan  se'Selingas  when  once  the  nobles 

feorran  gefricgean  far  and  wide  shall  hear 

fleam  edweme,  of  your  flight, 

domleaaan  dSd.  your  dishonorable  deed. 

Sea's  bi^  sella  Death  is  better 

eorla  gehwyloum  for  every  warrior 

^onne  edwitlif.  than  a  life  of  shame. 

But  we  are  not  compelled  to  draw  upon  the  stores 
of  poetry  and  imaginative  tradition  alone :  the  sober 
records  of  our  earlier  annalists  supply  ample  evi- 
dence in  corroboration  of  the  philosophical  historian. 

'  Beowulf,  1.  1682  seq.  '  Ibid.  1,  5262  seq.,  5384  seq. 

'  Ibid.  1.  5763. 


172  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

When  Cwichelm  of  Wessex  sent  an  assassin  to  cut 
off  Eaduuini  of  Northumberland,  that  prince  was 
saved  by  the  devotion  of  his  thane  Lilla,  who  threw 
himself  between,  and  received  the  blow  that  was 
destined  for  his  master;  in  the  words  of  Beda^: 
"Quod  cum  videret  Lilla  minister  regis  amicissi- 
mus,  non  habens  scutum  ad  manum  quo  regem  a 
nece  defenderet,  mox  interposuit  corpus  suum  ante 
ictum  pungentis ;  sed  tanta  vi  hostis  ferrum  infixit, 
ut  per  corpus  militis  occisi  etiam  regem  vulneraret." 
Again  we  learn  that  in  the  year  786,  Cyneheard, 
an  setheling  of  Wessex,  who  had  pretensions  to  the 
crown,  surprised  the  king  Cynewulf  at  the  house 
of  a  paramour  at  Merton,  and  there  slew  him.  He 
proffered  wealth  and  honours  to  the  comites  of  the 
king,  which  they  refused,  and  with  small  numbers 
manfully  held  out  till  every  one  had  fallen.  On  the 
following  morning  a  superior  force  of  the  king's 
thanes  came  up :  to  them  again  the  setheling  offered 
land  and  gold,  but  in  vain :  he  was  slain  on  the 
spot  with  all  his  own  comites,  who  refused  to  desert 
him  in  his  extremity.  This  is  the  account  given 
of  these  facts  in  the  words  of  the  Saxon  Chronicle 
itself  2; 

And  ^a  gebead  he  him  heora  agen-  And  then  he  offered  them  their 

ne  ddin  fees  and  londes,  gif  hie  own  desire  of  money  and  land,  if 

him  Saes  rices  liSon,  and  him  cytS-  they  would  grant  him  the  king- 

de,  Sset  heora  m^gas  him  mid  dom,  and  he  told  them  that  their 

w^ron,  'Sa  Be  him  from  noldon.  own  relatives  were  with  him,  who 

And  tiacw^don  hie,  ISsethim  na-  would  not  desert  him.   Then  said 

nig  mseg  leofra  ndere  'Sonne  heora  they,  that  no  relative  was  dearer 

hlaford,  and  hie  nsefre  his  hanan  to  them  than  their  lord,  and  that 

1  Hist.  Ecc.  ii.9.  =  chron.  Sax.  an.  755. 


CH.  VII.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  173 

folgian  noldoD.  And  'Sa  budon  hie  they  never  would  follow  his  mur- 
heoramSegum^sethiehimgesunde  derer.  And  then  they  offered 
from  eddon.  And  hie  cwcedon,  their  relatives  that  they  should 
^set  tJast  ilce  heora  geferum  geho-  leave  him,  with  safety  for  them- 
den  wdere  Se  ^r  mid  ^am  eyninge  selves  :  hut  they  said,  that  the 
wderon  ;  'Ssst  hie  hie  ^86s  ne  on-  same  offer  had  heen  made  to  tlieir 
munden,  ^on  ma  ISe  edwre  geferan  own  comrades  who  at  first  were 
tSe  mid  'Sam  eyninge  ofslaegene  with  the  king :  that  they  paid  no 
wSeron.  more   attention  to  it,  than  your 

comrades  who  were  slaughtered 

with  the  Mng. 

^thelweard,  Florence  of  Worcester,  and  Henry  of 
Huntingdon  all  follow  the  chronicle,  which  in  some 
details  they  apparently  translate.  William  of 
Malmesbury  seems  to  adopt  the  same  account,  but 
adds  a  few  words  which  have  especial  reference 
to  this  portion  of  the  argument^ :  "quorum  (^.  e. 
comitum)  qui  maximus  aevo  et  prudentia  Osricus, 
caeteros  cohortatus  ne  necem  domini  sui  in  insignem 
et  perpetuam  suam  ignominiam  inultam  dimitterent, 
districtis  gladiis  coniuratos  irruit." 

It  is  obvious  that  from  this  intimate  relation  be 
tween  the  prince  and  the  gesiS  must  arise  certain 
reciprocal  rights  and  duties,  sanctioned  by  cus- 
tom, which  would  gradually  form  themselves  into  a 
code  of  positive  law,  and  ultimately  aflfect  the  state 
and  condition  of  the  freemen.  In  the  earliest  de- 
velopment of  the  Comitatus,  it  is  clear  that  the 
idea  of  freedom  is  entirely  lost ;  it  is  replaced  by 
the  much  more  questionable  motive  of  honour,  or 
to  speak  more  strictly,  of  rank  and  station.  The 
comes  may  indeed  have  become  the  possessor  of 
land,  even  of  very  large  tracts  2,  by  gift  from  his 

'  Gest.  Reg.  i.  §  42.  ^  Beowulf,  1.  5984  seq. 


174  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

prince ;  but  he  could  not  be  the  possessor  of  a  free 
Hide,  and  consequently  bound  to  service  in  the 
general  fyrd,  or  to  suit  in  the  folcmot :  he  might 
have  wealth,  and  rank  and  honour,  be  povs^erful 
and  splendid,  dignified  and  influential,  but  he  could 
not  be  free :  and  if  even  the  freeman  so  far  forgot 
the  inherent  dignity  of  his  station  as  to  carry  him- 
self (for  his  e'Sel  I  think  he  could  not  carry)  into  the 
service  of  the  prince, — an  individual  man,  although 
a  prince,  and  not  as  yet  the  state,  or  the  represen- 
tative of  the  state, — can  it  be  doubted  that  the  re- 
munerative service  of  the  chief  would  outweigh  the 
barren  possession  of  the  farmer,  or  that  the  festive 
board  and  adventurous  life  of  the  castle  would  soon 
supply  excuses  for  neglecting  the  humbler  duties 
of  the  popular  court  and  judicature  \  Even  if  the 
markmen  razed  him  from  their  roll,  and  committed 
his  eSel  to  a  worthier  holder,  what  should  he  care, 
whom  the  liberality  of  his  conquering  leader  could 
endow  with  fifty  times  its  worth  ;  and  whose  total 
divorce  from  the  vulgar  community  would  probably 
be  looked  upon  with  no  disfavour  by  him  who  had 
already  marked  that  community  for  his  prey  ?  Nor 
could  those  whom  the  gesi'S  in  turn  settled  upon 
lands  which  were  not  within  the  general  mark-juris- 
diction, be  free  markmen,  but  must  have  stood  to- 
wards him  in  somewhat  the  same  relation  as  he 
stood  to  his  own  chief.  Upon  the  plan  of  the  larger 
household,  the  smaller  would  also  be  formed :  the 
same  or  similar  conditions  of  tenure  would  prevail ; 
and  the  services  of  his  dependants  he  was  no  doubt 
bound  to  hold  at  the  disposal  of  his  own  lord,  and 


CH.  VII.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  175 

to  maintain  for  his  advantage.  We  have  thus,  even 
in  the  earliest  times,  the  nucleus  of  a  standing 
army,  the  means  and  instruments  of  aggrandize- 
ment both  for  the  King  and  the  praetorian  cohorts 
themselves ;  practised  and  delighting  in  battle,  ever 
ready  to  join  in  expeditions  which  promised  adven- 
ture, honour  or  plunder,  feasted  in  time  of  peace, 
enriched  in  time  of  war  ;  holding  the  bond  that 
united  them  to  their  chief  as  more  sacred  or  strin- 
gent than  even  that  of  blood  ^,  and  consequently 
ready  for  his  sake  to  turn  their  arms  against  the 
free  settlers  in  the  district,  whenever  his  caprice,  his 
passion  or  his  ambition  called  upon  their  services. 
In  proportion  as  his  power  and  dignity  increased 
by  their  efforts  and  assistance,  so  their  power  and 
dignity  increased  ;  his  rank  and  splendour  were  re- 
flected upon  all  that  surrounded  him,  till  at  length 
it  became  not  only  more  honourable  to  be  the  un- 
free  chattel  of  a  prince,  than  the  poor  free  culti- 
vator of  the  soil,  but  even  security  for  possession 
and  property  could-  only  be  attained  within  the 
compass  of  their  body.  As  early  as  the  period 
when  the  Frankish  Law  was  compiled,  we  find  the 
great  advantage  enjoyed  by  the  Comes  over  the 
Free  Salian  or  Ripuarian,  in  the  large  proportion 
borne  by  his  wergyld,  in  comparison  with  that  of 
the  latter  2. 

The  advantage  derived  by  the  community  from 

'  Alfred  excepts  tlie  lord,  wMle  he  defines  the  cases  in  wliicli  a  man 
may  give  armed  assistance  to  his  relative.  The  right  of  private  feud 
is  not  to  extend  to  that  sacred  obligation  of  fealty.     Leg.  jElf.  §  42. 

^  Leg.  Salic.  Tit.  Ivii.  cap.  1,  2.     Leg.  Rip.  liii.  cap.  1,  2. 


176  THE  SxVXOXS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  presence  and  protection  of  an  armed  force  such 
as  the  gesiSas  constituted,  must  have  gradually 
produced  a  disposition  to  secure  their  favour  even 
at  the  expense  of  the  free  nobles  and  settlers  :  and 
a  Mark  that  wished  to  entrust  its  security  and  its 
interests  to  a  powerful  soldier,  would  probably  soon 
acquiesce  in  his  assuming  a  direction  and  leader- 
ship in  their  affairs,  hardly  more  consistent  with 
their  original  liberty,  than  the  influence  which  a 
modern  nobleman  may  establish  by  watching,  as 
it  is  called,  over  the  interests  of  the  Eegistration. 
Even  the  old  nobles  by  blood,  who  gradually  beheld 
themselves  forced  down  into  a  station  of  compara- 
tive poverty  and  obscurity,  must  have  early  hastened 
to  give  in  their  adhesion  to  a  new  order  of  things 
which  held  out  peculiar  prospects  of  advantage  to 
themselves  ;  and  thus,  the  communities  deserted  by 
their  natural  leaders,  soon  sunk  into  a  very  sub- 
ordinate situation,  became  portions  of  larger  uni- 
ties under  the  protection,  and  ultimately  the  rule, 
of  successful  adventurers,  and  consented  without  a 
struggle  to  receive  their  comites  into  those  offices 
of  power  and  distinction  which  were  once  conferred 
by  popular  election. 

As  the  gesi'Sas  were  not  free,  and  could  not  take 
a  part  in  the  deliberations  of  the  freemen  at  the 
folcmot,  or  in  the  judicial  proceedings,  except  in 
as  far  as  they  were  represented  by  their  chief, 
means  for  doing  justice  between  themselves  became 
necessary  :  these  were  provided  by  the  establish- 
ment of  a  system  of  law,  administered  in  the  lord's 
court,  by  his  officers,  and  to  which  all  his  depen- 


CH.  vn.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  177 

dants  were  required  to  do  suit  and  service  as  amply 
as  they  would,  if  free,  have  been  bound  to  do  in 
the  folcmot.  But  the  law,  administered  in  such  a 
coutt,  and  in  those  formed  upon  its  model  in  the 
lands  of  the  comites  themselves, — a  privilege  very 
generally  granted  by  the  king,  at  least  in  later 
periods^, — was  necessarily  very  different  from  that 
which  could  prevail  in  the  court  of  the  freemen : 
it  is  only  in  a  lord's  court  that  we  can  conceive 
punishments  to  have  arisen  which  affected  life  and 
honour,  and  fealty  with  all  its  consequences  to  have 
attained  a  settled  and  stringent  form,  totally  un- 
known to  the  popular  judicature.  Forfeiture,  or 
rather  excommunication,  and  pecuniary  mulcts, 
which  partook  more  of  the  nature  of  damages  than 
of  fine,  were  all  that  the  freeman  would  subject 
himself  to  under  ordinary  circumstances.  Expul- 
sion, degradation,  death  itself  might  be  the  portion 
of  him  whose  whole  life  was  the  property  of  a  lord. 


'  Eadweard  of  Wessez  in  904  transferred  Us  royal  rights  in  Taunton 
to  the  see  of  Winchester.  He  says :  "  Conceasi  ut  episoopi  homines, 
tarn  nobiles  quam  ignobiles  (i.  e.  XII  hynde  and  II  hynde)  in  praefato 
rare  degentes,  hoc  idem  ins  in  omni  haberent  dignitate  (had),  C[uo  regis 
homines  perfruuntur,  regalibus  iisois  commorantes  :  et  omnium  saecu- 
larium  rerum  indicia  ad  usus  praesiilum  exerceantur  eodem  modo  quo 
regalium  negotiorum  discutiuntur  indicia.  Praedictae  etiam  villae 
meroimonium  quod  Anglice  'Sses  tiines  cyping.  appellatur,  censusque 
omnis  civilis,  sanctae  dei  aecclesiae  in  Wintonia  civitate  sine  retracta- 
tionia  obstaculo  cum  omnibus  commodis  aeternaliter  deserviat."  Ood. 
Dipl.  No.  1084.  He  had  previously  granted  an  immunity  from  regal 
and  comitial  interference ;  the  result  of  which  was  to  place  all  judicial 
and  fiscal  functions  in  the  hands  of  the  bishop's  reeve  instead  of  the 
sheriifj  or  the  king's  burgreeve.  The  document  fui'nishes  an  admirable 
example  of  an  Immunity,  or,  as  it  is  technically  called  in  the  Anglo- 
saxou  law,  a  grant  of  Sacn  and  Sdcn. 

VOL.  I.  '  N 


178  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i 

to  be  by  him  disposed  of  at  his  pleasure.  Hence 
the  forfeiture  oflands  for  adultery  and  incontinence, 
and  hence  even  Alfred  affixes  the  penalty  of  death 
to  the  crime  of  hlafordsyrwe,  or  conspiracy  against 
a  lord^,  while  manslaughter  could  still  be  com- 
pounded for  by  customary  payments.  One  or  two 
special  cases  may  be  quoted  to  show  how  the  rela- 
tion of  the  gesiS  to  his  chief  modified  the  general 
law  of  the  state. 

The  horse  and  arms  which,  in  the  strict  theory 
of  the  comitatus,  had  been  the  gift,  or  rather  the 
loan  of  the  chief,  were  to  be  returned  at  the  death 
of  the  vassal,  in  order,  according  to  the  same  theory, 
that  they  might  furnish  some  other  adventurer  with 
the  instruments  of  service 2.  These,  technically 
called  Heregeatwe,  armatura  helUca,  have  con- 
tinued even  to  our  own  day  under  the  name  of 
Heriot,  and  strictly  speaking  consist  of  horses  and 
weapons.  In  later  imitation  of  this,  the  unfree  set- 
tlers on  a  lord's  land,  who  were  not  called  upon 
by  their  tenure  to  perform  military  service,  were 
bound  on  demise  to  pay  the  best  chattel  {melius 
catallum,  best  head,  in  German  beste  haupt,  heriot- 
custom,  as  opposed  to  heriot-service)  to  the  lord, 
probably  on  the  theoretical  hypothesis  that  he,  at 


'  Leg.  M]&.  Introduction,  and  §  4, 

''  This  is  necessary  in  a  country  where  the  materials  of  which  wea- 
pons are  fabricated  are  not  abundant,  which  Tacitus  notices  as  the  case 
in  Germany,  "ne  ferrum  quidem  superest,  gicut  ex  genere  telorum 
coUigitur."  Germ.  vi.  Adventurers,  ever  on  the  move,  are  prone  to 
realize  their  gains  in  the  most  portable  shape.  Rings,  gems  and  arms 
are  the  natural  form,  and  a  Teutonic  kingjs  treasury  must  have  been 
fiUed  with  them,  in  preference  to  all  other  valuables. 


CH.  vn.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  179 

the  commencement  of  the  tenancy,  had  supplied 
the  necessary  implements  of  agriculture.  And  this 
differs  entirely  from  a  Reliefs,  because  Heriot  is  the 
act  of  the  leaving,  Relief  the  act  of  the  incoming 
tenant  or  heir  2;  and  because  in  its  very  nature 
and  amount  Heriot  is  of  a  somevs^hat  indefinite 
character,  but  Eelief  is  not. 

In  the  strict  theory  of  the  comitatus,  the  gesiS 
could  possess  no  property  of  his  own ;  all  that  he 
acquired  was  his  lord's,  and  even  the  liberalities 
of  the  lord  himself  were  only  heneficia  or  loans, 
not  absolute  gifts^ :  he  had  the  usufruct  only  during 
life,  the  dominium  utile:  the  dominium  directum 
was  in  the  lord,  and  at  the  death  of  the  tenant  it  is 
obvious  that  the  estate  vested  in  the  lord  alone : 
the  gesiS  could  have  no  ius  testamenti,  as  indeed 
he  had  no  family :  the  lord  stood  to  him  in  place 

'  Relief,  relevium,  from  relevare,  to  lift  or  take  up  again.  It  is  a 
sum  paid  by  the  heir  to  the  lord,  on  taking  or  lifting  up  again  the  in- 
heritance of  an  estate  which  has,  as  it  were,  fallen  to  the  ground  by  the 
death  of  the  ancestor. 

^  Fleta,  lib.  iii.  cap.  18. 

'  Montesquieu  has  seen  this  very  clearly,  when  he  considers  even  the 
horse  and/r«»ieo  of  Tacitus  in  the  light  of  lenefida.  From  a  charter  of 
jESelflsed,  an.  915-922,  it  would  seem  that  in  Mercia  a  thane  required 
the  consent  of  the  lord,  before  he  could  purchase  an  estate  of  bookland  : 
"Ego  ^'SelflCed.  . .  .dedi  licentiam  Eadrico  meo  ministro  comparandi 
terram  decern  manentium  set  Eembeorgen,  sibi  suisque  haeredibus  per- 
petualiter  possidendam."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  343.  About  the  close  of  the 
ninth  century,  Wulf  here,  a  duke,  having  left  the  country,  and  so  de- 
serted the  duties  of  his  position,  was  adjudged  to  lose  even  his  private 
lands  of  inheritance  :  "  Quaudo  ille  utrumque  et  suum  dominum  regem 
.^Ifredum  et  patriam,  ultra  iusiiu'andum  quam  regi  et  suis  omnibus  op- 
timatibus  iuraverat,  sine  licentia  dereliquit ;  tunc  etiam,  cum  omnium 
iudicio  sapientium  Geuisorum  et  Meroensium,  potestatem  et  haeredita- 
tem  dereliquit  agrorum."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1078.  The  importance  of  this 
passage  seems  to  me  to  rest  upon  the  words  "  sine  licentia." 

n2 


180  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  father,  brother  and  son.  Hereditary  succession, 
which  must  at  first  have  been  a  very  rare  exception, 
could  only  have  arisen  at  all  either  from  the  volun- 
tary or  the  compelled  grant  of  the  lord :  it  could 
only  become  general  when  the  old  distinction  be- 
tween the  free  markman  and  the  gesiS  had  become 
obliterated,  and  the  system  of  the  Comitatus  had 
practically  and  politically  swallowed  up  every  other. 
Yet  even  under  these  circumstances  it  would  appear 
that  a  perfectly  defined  result  was  not  attained ; 
and  hence,  although  the  document  entituled  "  Rec- 
titudines  singularum  personarum"  numbers  the 
ius  testamenti  among  the  rights  of  the  Jiegen^,  yet 
even  to  the  close  of  the  Anglosaxon  monarchy,  we 
find  dukes,  prsefects,  kings'  thanes,  and  other  great 
nobles  humbly  demanding  permission  from  the  king 
to  make  wills,  entreating  him  not  to  disturb  their 
testamentary  dispositions,  and  even  bribing  his 
acquiescence  by  including  him  among  the  lega- 
tees. In  this  as  in  all  human  afi"airs,  a  compromise 
was  gradually  found  necessary  between  opposing 
powers,  and  the  king  as  well  as  the  comites,  neither 
of  whom  could  dispense  with  the  assistance  of  the 
other,  found  it  advisable  to  make  mutual  conces- 
sions. I  doubt  whether  at  even  an  earlier  period 
than  the  eleventh  century,  the  whole  body  of  thanes 
would  have  permitted  the  king  to  disregard  the 
testament  of  one  of  their  body,  unless  upon  defi- 
nite legal  grounds,  as  for  example  grave  suspicion 

'  "  pegenes  kgu  is  «8st  lie  sf  his  boorilites  wyrtSe ;  taini  lex  est  ut 
sit  dignus  rectitudine  testamenti  sui."  Tliorpe,  i.  432.  And  with  this 
jElfred's  law  of  entails  is  consistent.  Leg.  ^If.  §  41.   Thorpe,  i.  88. 


CH.  vn.]  THE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  381 

of  treason:  but  still  they  might  consent  to  the 
nominal  application  and  sanction  of  the  ancient 
principle,  by  allowing  the  insertion  of  a  general 
petition,  that  the  will  might  stand,  in  the  body  of 
the  instrument^. 

The  circumstances  thus  brought  under  review 
show  clearly  that  the  condition  of  the  gesi'S  was 
unfree  in  itself;  that  even  the  free  by  birth  who 
entered  into  it,  relinquished  that  most  sacred  in- 
heritance, and  reduced  themselves  to  the  rank  of 
thanes,  ministers  or  servants.  Certain  rights  and 
privileges  grew  up,  no  doubt,  by  custom,  and  the 
counts  were  probably  not  very  long  subject  to  the 
mere  arbitrary  will  of  the  chief:  they  had  the  pro- 
tection of  others  in  a  similar  state  of  dependency 
to  their   own,  and   chances,   such   as   they   were, 

'  Toward  the  end  of  tlie  tenth  century,  Beorhtrio,  a  wealthy  noble  in 
Kent,  devised  land  by  will  to  various  relatives.  He  left  the  king,  a 
collar  worth  eighty  mancuses  of  gold,  and  a  sword  of  equal  value ;  his 
heriot,  comprising  four  horses,  two  of  which  were  saddled ;  two  swords 
with  their  belts;  two  hawks,  and  all  his  hounds.  He  further  gave  to 
the  queen,  a  ring  worth  thirty  mancuses  of  gold,  and  a  mare,  that  she 
might  be  his  advocate  (forespreeoe)  that  the  wiU  might  stand,  "  'Sset  se 
cwide  stondan  mihte."  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  492.  Between  044  and  946, 
JESelgyfu  devised  lands  and  chattels  to  St.  Albans,  "  cum  consensu  do- 
mini  mei  regis."  The  king  and  queen  had  a  very  fair  share  of  this 
spoil.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  410.  Between  965  and  975,  JElf  heah,  an  ealdor- 
mau,  or  noble  of  the  highest  rank,  and  cousin  of  Eadgir's  queen 
MUiSiy'S,  left  lands,  a  good  share  of  which  went  to  the  king  and  queen : 
.the  will  was  made,  "be  his  cynehlafordes  gehafunge,"  by  his  royal 
lord's  permission,  and  winds  up  with  this  clause  :  "And  the  witnesses 
to  this  permission  which  the  king  granted  (observe,  not  to  the  will 
itself,  but  to  the  king's  permission  to  leave  the  property  as  he  did,)  are 
Mmvp  the  queen  and  others."  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  593.  ^«elflffid  a  royal 
lady,  left  lands,  some  of  which  went  to  the  king :  she  says,  "  And  ic 
bidde  minan  leofan  hlaford  for  Godes  lufun,  tSset  min  cwide  standan 
mote," — and  I  beg  my  dear  Lord,  for  God's  love,  that  this  my  will  may 


182  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  subservience  to  the  king's  wishes :  a  bond  of 
affection  and  interdependence  surpassing  that  of 
blood,  and  replacing  the  mutual  free  guarantee  of 
life  and  security,  was  formed  between  them ;  and 
they  shared  alike  in  the  joys  and  sorrows,  the 
successes  and  reverses  of  peace  and  war :  but  with 
it  all,  and  whatever  their  rank,  they  were  in  fact 
menials,  housed  within  the  walls,  fed  at  the  table, 
clothed  at  the  expense  of  their  chief;  dependent 
upon  his  bounty,  his  gratitude  or  forbearance,  for 
their  subsistence  and  position  in  life ;  bound  to 
sacrifice  that  life  itself  in  his  service,  and,  strictly 
considered,  incapable  of  contracting  marriage  or 
sharing  in  the  inestimable  sanctities  of  a  home. 
They  were  his  cupbearers,  stewards,  chamberlains 
and  grooms ;    even  as  kings  and  electors  were  to 

stand.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  685.  In  the  time  of  ^ISelred,  Wulfwam,  a  lady, 
commences  her  will  in  these  words  :  "Ic  Wulfwaru  bidde  mine  ledfan 
hlaford  ^^elred  kyning,  him  to  selmyssan,  tSset  ic  mote  beon  mines 
cwides  wyrKe ; "  i.  e.  that  I  may  be  worthy  of  my  right  of  devising 
by  will ;  that  I  may  enjoy  my  right  of  making  a  will.  Cod.  Dipl. 
No.  694.  jElfgyfu  the  q^ueen  in  1012  commences  her  wiU  in  similar 
terms:  "Dis  is  ^Ifgyfe  gegurning  to  hire  cynehlaforde.  Dsetis'Sset 
hed  hine  bitt  for  Godes  lufun  and  for  cynescipe  'Sset  heo  mote  beon 
hyre  cwides  wyi«e."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  721.  ^«elstan,  king  ^-Selred's 
son,  made  also  a  will,  from  which  I  take  the  following  passage :  "  Now 
I  thank  my  father,  with  all  humility,  in  the  name  of  Almighty  God, 
for  the  answer  which  he  sent  me  on  the  Friday  after  Midsummer  day, 
by  ^Ifgar  ^ffa's  son ;  that  was,  that  he  told  me,  upon  my  father's 
word,  that  I  might,  by  God's  leave  and  his,  grant  my  realty  and  chattels, 
as  I  thought  best,  whether  for  spiritual  or  temporal  ends.  And  the  wit- 
nesses to  this  answer  are  Eadmund,"  etc.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  722.  Lastly, 
^If  helm  concludes  his  wUl  with  these  words  :  "  Now  I  entreat  thee, 
my  dear  lord,  that  my  will  may  stand,  and  that  thou  permit  not  that 
any  man  should  set  it  aside.  God  is  my  withess  that  I  was  ever  obe- 
dient to  thy  father,  to  the  utmost  of  my  power,  and  full  faithful  to 
him  both  in  mind  and  main,  and  have  ever  been  faithful  to  thee,  in  full 
faith  and  full  love,  as  God  is  my  witness."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  967. 


CH.  TO.]  TPIE  NOBLE  BY  SERVICE.  183 

the  emperor,  whom  they  had  raised  out  of  their 
own  body.  The  real  nature  of  their  service  appears 
even  through  the  haze  of  splendour  and  dignity 
which  gradually  surround  the  intimate  servants 
of  royalty;  and  as  the  chief  might  select  his  co- 
mites  and  instruments  from  what  class  he  chose, 
it  was  the  fate  of  these  voluntary  thanes,  not  un- 
frequently  to  be  numbered  in  the  same  category 
with  the  unfree  by  birth,  and  thus,  in  their  own 
persons,  to  witness  the  destruction  of  that  essential 
principle  of  all  Teutonic  law,  the  distinction  be- 
tween the  freeman  and  the  serf  i. 

Great  indeed  ought  to  be  the  advantages  which 
could  compensate  for  sacrifices  like  these,  and  great 
in  their  eyes,  beyond  a  doubt,  they  were.  In  re- 
turn for  freedom,  the  gesi^  obtained  a  certain  main- 
tenance, the  chance  of  princely  favour,  a  military 
and  active  life  of  adventure,  with  all  its  advantages 
of  pillage,  festivals  and  triumphs,  poets  and  min- 
strels, courtly  halls  and  adventitious  splendour ; 
the  usufruct  at  least,  and  afterwards  the  possession, 
of  lands  and  horses,  arms  and  jewels.  As  the  royal 
power  steadily  advanced  by  his  assistance,  and  the 
old,  national  nobility  of  birth,  as  well  as  the  old, 
landed  freeman  sunk  into  a  lower  rank,  the  gesiS 
found  himself  rising  in  power  and  consideration  pro- 
portioned to  that  of  his  chief:  the  offices  which  had 

'  "  Libertini  non  multum  supra  servos  sunt,  raro  aliquod  momentum 
in  domo,  nunquam  in  civitate ;  exceptis  duntaxat  iis  gentibus,  quae 
regnantur:  ibi  enim  et  super  ingenues  et  super  nobilea  ascendunt: 
apud  caeteros  impares  libertini  libertatis  argumeutum  sunt."  Tac. 
Crerm.  xxv. 


184  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

passed  from  the  election  of  the  freemen  to  the  gift 
of  the  crown  ^,  were  now  conferred  upon  him,  and 
the  ealdorman,  duke,  gerefa,  judge,  and  even  the 
birihop,  were  at  length  selected  from  the  ranks  of 
the  comitatus.  Finally,  the  nobles  by  birth  them- 
selves became  absorbed  in  the  ever-widening  whirl- 
pool ;  day  by  day  the  freemen,  deprived  of  their  old 
national  defences,  wringing  with  difficulty  a  preca- 
rious subsistence  from  incessant  labour,  sullenly 
yielded  to  a  yoke  which  they  could  not  shake  off, 
and  commended  themselves  (such  was  the  phrase) 
to  the  protection  of  a  lord ;  till  a  complete  change 
having  thus  been  operated  in  the  opinions  of  men, 
and  consequently  in  every  relation  of  society,  a 
new  order  of  things  was  consummated,  in  which 
the  honours  and  security  of  service  became  more 
anxiously  desired  than  a  needy  and  unsafe  freedom ; 
and  the  alods  being  finally  surrendered,  to  be  taken 
back  as  heneficia,  under  mediate  lords,  the  founda- 
tions of  the  royal,  feudal  system  were  securely  laid 
on  every  side. 

'  By  this  step,  the  crown  became  the  real  leader  of  the  herehan,  or 
posse  comitatus,  as  well  as  of  the  gesi'Sas  and  their  power :  and  thus 
also,  the  head  of  the  juridical  power  in  the  counties,  as  well  as  the  lords' 
courts.  Moreover  it  extended  the  powers  and  provisions  of  martial 
law  to  the  offences  of  the  freemen. 


185 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  UNFREE.    THE  SERF. 

We  have  considered  the  case  of  the  wife,  the  son 
and  the  daughter  i,  as  far  as  can  be  done  until  we 
come  to  deal  with  the  family  relations  ;  and  we 
have  examined  the  position  of  one  peculiar  class 
of  the  unfree,  namely  the  comites  or  gesiSas  of  the 
kingly  leaders.  Another,  but  less  favoured,  class 
remain  to  be  noticed,  those  namely  whom  the 
Latin  authors  designate  by  the  terms  Libertus  and 
Servus,  and  who,  among  all  the  nations  of  Germa- 
nic origin,  are  found  under  the  corresponding  de- 
nominations of  Lazzi  or  Dio,  Lset  or  Deow,  Lysingr 
or  prsel.  These  have  no  honourable,  no  profitable 
service  to  compensate  for  the  loss  of  independence, 
but  form  the  large  body  of  hired  cultivators,  the 
artizans  and  handicraftsmen  in  various  branches  of 
industry,  the  prsedial,  even  the  domestic  or  menial 
servants  of  the  free  landowner. 

The  grounds  as  well  as  the  degrees  of  slavery 
(by  which  term  I  mean  dependence,  the  being  in 
the  mund  of  another,  and  represented  by  him  in 
the  folcmdt)  are  various ;  one,  viz.  poverty  arising 

'  Page  129. 


186  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

from  over-population,  has  been  noticed  in  the  last 
chapter ;  but  I  agree  with  Eichhorni  and  Grimm^, 
in  attributing  the  principal  and  original  cause  of 
slavery  in  all  its  branches  to  war  and  subsequent 
conquest.  Another  and  important  cause  is  for- 
feiture of  liberty  for  crime  ;  and  the  amount  of 
dependence,  the  gentler  or  harsher  condition  of  the 
serf,  depends  to  a  great  extent  upon  the  original 
ground  of  servitude.  If  the  victor  has  a  right  to 
the  life  of  the  vanquished,  which  by  the  law  of 
nature  is  unquestionably  the  case,  he  possesses  a 
fortiori  a  perfect  claim  to  the  person,  the  property 
and  the  services  of  his  prisoner,  if  his  self-interest 
or  the  dictates  of  humanity  induce  him  to  waive 
that  right^.  These  remarks  apply  no  doubt,  in 
their  full  force,  only  to  our  pagan  forefathers ;  but 
even  Christianity  itself  did  not  at  once  succeed  in 
rooting  out  habits  which  its  divine  precepts  of  jus- 
tice and  mercy  emphatically  condemn.  Beda,  in 
his  desire  to  prove  the  efficacy  of  the  mass  for  the 
dead''',  tells  an  interesting  story  of  a  young  noble 


'  Deut.  Staatsges.  i.  72,  §  15. 

^  Deutsche  Rechtaalterthiimer,  p.  320,  with  the  numerous  examples 
there  given.  So  Fleta.  "Fiunt  autem  homines  servi  de  iure  gentium 
captivitate :  bella  enim  orta  sunt,  et  captivitates  sequutae.  Fiunt  etiam 
de  iure  civili,  per  coufessiouem  in  curia  fisci  factam."   Lib.  i.  c.  3.  §  3. 

^  A  whole  army  may  be  devoted  as  victims  by  the  conquerors.  "  Sed 
bellum  Hermunduris  prosperum,  Oattis  exitiosius  fuit,  quia  victores 
diversam  aciem  Marti  ac  Mercurio  sacravere,  quo  voto  equi,  viri,  cuncta, 
victa  occidioni  dantur."  Tac.  Annal.  xiii.  57.  "  Lucis  propinquis  bar- 
barae  arae,  apud  quas  tribunes  ac  primorum  ordinum  centurioues  mac- 
taveraut :  et  cladis ....  superstites,  pugnam  aut  vincula  elapsi,  referebant 
....  quot  patibula  captivis,  quae  sorobes,"  etc.    Tac.  Annal.  i.  61. 

"  Hist.  Eccles.  iv.  22. 


CH.  VIII.]  THE  UNFREE.    THE  SERF.  187 

who  was  left  severely  wounded  on  the  field,  after  a 
battle  between  Ecgfri'S  of  Northumberland  and 
iESelred  of  Mercia,  in  the  year  679.  Fearful  of 
the  consequences  should  his  rank  be  discovered,  he 
disguised  himself  in  the  habit  of  a  peasant,  and  as- 
sumed that  character,  at  the  castle  of  the  earl  into 
whose  hands  he  fell ;  declaring  that  he  was  a  poor, 
and  married  man  ^,  who  had  been  compelled  to  at- 
tend the  army  with  supplies  of  provisions.  But  his 
language  and  manners  betrayed  him,  and  at  length, 
under  a  solemn  promise  of  immunity,  he  revealed 
his  name  and  station.  The  reply  of  the  earl  is  cha- 
racteristic ;  he  said  :  "  I  knew  well  enough  from 
thy  answers  that  thou  wert  no  rustic ;  and  now  in- 
deed thou  art  worthy  of  death,  seeing  that  all  my 
brothers  and  relations  were  slain  in  that  battle : 
yet  I  will  not  kill  thee,  lest  I  should  break  the 
faith  that  I  have  pledged."  Accordingly  when  his 
wounds  were  healed,  his  captor  sold  him  to  a  Frisian 
in  London,  who,  finding  that  he  could  not  be  bound, 
finally  released  him  on  his  parole  and  permitted 
him  to  ransom  himself.  Whatever  the  motive,  it 
is  thus  clear  that  the  victor  possessed  the  right  of 
life  and  death  over  his  captive,  even  when  taken  in 
cold  blood  ;  and  the  traditions,  as  well  as  the  histo- 
rical records  of  the  northern  nations  are  filled  with 
instances  of  its  exercise. 


'  This  ia  confirmatory  of  tlie  statement  in  the  last  chapter,  that, 
strictly  speaking,  the  Comes  could  not  marry.  One  cannot  see  why  the 
assertion  should  have  been  made  on  any  other  grounds:  his  great 
anxiety  was  to  prove  himself  not  a  comes  or  minister,  and  as  one  argu- 
ment, he  states  himself  to  be  "uxoreo  nexu  constrictus." 


188  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

It  does  not  however  by  any  means  follow  that 
the  total  defeat  of  a  hostile  tribe  resulted  in  the  im- 
mediate and  direct  enslaving  of  all  the  survivors : 
as  in  the  example  just  cited,  the  blood-feud  no 
doubt  frequently  led  to  the  murder  of  the  captive 
chiefs  and  nobles,  even  if  less  justifiable  motives 
did  not  counsel  the  same  miserable  means  of  re- 
moving dangerous  competitors^;  but  the  heavy 
doom  of  death  must  have  been  one  of  the  melan- 
choly privileges  of  the  noble  class :  and  even  though 
many  of  the  common  freemen  may  have  been  sold 
or  retained  as  slaves  at  the  caprice  of  the  captors, 
still  we  cannot  suppose  this  to  have  been  the  lot  of 
any  but  those  who  had  actually  taken  part  in  com- 
bat ;  no  natural  or  national  law  could  extend  these 
harsh  provisions  to  the  freemen  who  remained  quiet 
at  home.  Nevertheless  even  these  were  liable  to 
be  indirectly  affected  by  the  hostile  triumph,  inas- 
much as  the  conquerors  appear  invariably  to  have 
taken  a  portion,  more  or  less  great,  of  the  territory 
occupied  by  the  conquered  ^i  and  wherever  this  is 


'  After  a  "battle  between  Ragnachari  and  Cblodowicb,  in  which  the 
former  was  taken  prisoner,  the  victor  thus  addressed  him :  "  Oui 
dixit  Ohlodoveus,  Cur  humiliaati  gentem  nostram,  ut  te  vinciri  per- 
mitteres  ?  Nonne  melius  tibi  fuerit  mori  ?  Et  elevata  bipenne,  in 
caput  eius  defixit,  et  mortuus  est.  Conversusque  ad  fratrem  eius,  ait : 
Si  tu  solatium  fratri  tuo  praehuisses,  ille  ligatus  non  fuisset !  Similiter 
et  ipsum  in  eapite  percussum  interfecit,  et  mortuus  est."  Gest.  Reg. 
Franc.  (Script.  Rer.  Gall,  et  Francic.  ii.  556.)  It  was  the  interest  of 
Chlodowich  to  put  these  princes  to  death,  but  there  must  still  have 
been  some  right  acknowledged  in  him  to  do  so.  He  seems  however  to 
rest  it  upon  the  disgrace  which  they  had  brought  upon  the  msegburh, 
gens  or  family,  by  suffering  themselves  to  be  captured  and  bound. 

^  "  (Juod  Ariovistus in  eorum  finibus  consedisset,  tertiamque 


CH.  vni.]  THE  UNFREE.    THE  SERF.  189 

the  case  to  the  extent  of  depriving  the  cultivator  of 
means  sufficient  for  his  support,  he  has  no  resource 
but  to  place  himself  in  dependence  upon  some 
wealthier  man,  and  lose,  together  with  his  lot  or 
kXijjooc,  the  right  to  form  an  integral  part  of  the 
state :  the  degree  of  his  dependence,  and  the  con- 
sequent comparative  suffering  to  himself,  may  vary 
with  a  multitude  of  circumstances  ;  but  the  one  fact 
still  remains,  viz.  that  he  is  in  the  mund  or  hand 
of  another,  represented  in  the  state  by  that  other, 
and  consequently,  in  the  most  emphatic  sense  of 
the  word,  wnfree. 

It  is  now  generally  admitted  that  this  must  have 
been  the  case  with  the  whole  population  in  some 
districts,  who  thus  became  dependent  upon  a  few 
intrusive  lords :  but  still  these  populations  cannot 
be  said  to  have  stood  in  that  peculiar  relation  to 
the  conquerors,  which  the  word  servus  strictly  im- 
plies towards  an  owner.  The  utmost  extent  of  their 
subjection  probably  reached  no  further  than  the 
payment  of  tribute,  the  exclusion  from  military 
duty  and  the  standing  under  a  protectorate^.  In- 
glorious and  easy,  when  once  the  dues  of  the  lord 
were  paid,  they  may  even  have  rejoiced  at  being 
spared  the  danger  of  warfare  and  the  laborious  suit 


partem  agri  Sequani  qui  esset  optimus  totius  Galliae,  ocoupaTisset ;  et 
nunc  de  altera  parte  tertia  Sequanos  decedereiuberet."  Oaes.  Bell.  Gall, 
i.  32.  The  same  proportion  of  a  third,  sometimes  however  in  produce, 
not  land,  occurs  in  other  cases  :  Eichhorn,  Deut.  Staatsges.  i.  161  seq. 
§  23,  with  the  accompanying  quotations. 

'  This  is  the  condition  of  the  Perioecians  in  Laconia,  with  the  ex- 
ception that  these  were  called  upon  for  military  service.  The  Helotae 
or  Penestae  were  more  nearly  praedial  serfs. 


190  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  the  folcmot,  and  forgotten  that  self-government 
is  the  inherent  right  and  dignity  of  man,  in  the 
convenience  of  having  others  to  defend  and  rule 
them.  Moreover  the  territorial  subjection  wsis  not 
necessarily  a  juridical  one  :  indeed  some  of  the  Teu- 
tonic conquerors  recognized  as  positive  law,  the 
right  of  even  the  dependent  Eomans  and  Provin- 
cials to  be  judged  and  taxed  according  to  the  rules 
and  maxims  of  Eoman,  not  Salic  or  Langobardic, 
jurisprudence :  and  this,  vphen  carried  out  in  the 
fullest  detail  with  respect  to  the  various  tribes  at 
any  time  united  under  one  supreme  head,  consti- 
tutes what  is  now  called  the  system  of  Personal 
Bight,  whereby  each  man  enjoyed  the  law  and  forms 
of  law  to  which  he  was  born,  without  the  least 
reference  to  the  peculiar  district  in  which  he  might 
happen  to  live  ;  in  other  words,  that  he  carried  his 
own  law  about,  whithersoever  he  went,  as  a  quality 
attached  to  his  own  person,  and  not  in  the  slightest 
degree  connected  with  or  dependent  upon  any  par- 
ticular locality.  In  this  way  Alamanni,  Baiowari, 
Saxons,  Frisians,  Langobards,  Eomans,  Gallic  pro- 
vincials and  Slavonic  populations,  were  all  united 
under  the  empire  of  the  Salic  and  Eipuarian  Franks^. 
The  peculiar  circumstances  under  which  the  con- 
quest took  place  must,  of  course,  have  defined  the 
relations  under  which  the  subject  stood  to  the  ruling 
state.  It  is  conceivable  that  the  conquerors  might 
not  want  land,  but  be  contented  with  glory  and  ■ 

'  This  led  by  degrees  to  the  vast  power  and  influence  of  all  the 
clergy,  who  were  originally  Eoman,  and  who,  whatever  their  nation 
might  be,  lived  under  the  Eoman  law,  "per  clericalem  honorem 


OH.  vm.]  THE  UNFKEE.    THE  SERF.  101 

pillage ;  or  they  might  not  be  able  to  seize  and 
retain  the  conquered  territory :  or  again  they  may 
have  required  new  settlements  for  themselves  and 
their  allies,  to  obtain  which  they  waged  a  war  of 
extermination.  Thus  the  Suevi,  although  unable 
to  expel  the  Ubii  altogether  from  their  territory, 
yet  succeeded  in  rendering  them  tributary  ^ ;  while 
in  Thuringia,  the  Franks  and  their  Saxon  allies 
seized  all  the  land,  slaying,  expelling  or  completely 
reducing  the  indigenous  inhabitants  to  slavery. 
Another  and  curious  instance  may  be  cited  from  a 
comparatively  late  period,  when  the  little  island  of 
Man  M'as  invaded,  conquered  and  colonized  by  the 
Norwegian  Godred.  "  Godredus  sequenti  die  opti- 
onem  exercitui  suo  dedit,  ut  si  mallent  Manniam 
inter  se  dividere  et  in  ea  habitare,  vel  cunctam 
substantiam  terrae  accipere  et  ad  propria  remeare. 
Hiis  autem  magis  placuit  totam  insulam  vastare, 
et  de  bonis  illius  ditari,  et  sic  ad  propria  reverti. 
Godredus  autem  paucis  qui  secum  remanserunt 
de  insulanis  australem  partem  insulae,  et  reliquiis 
Mannensium  aquilonarem  tali  pacto  concessit,  ut 
nemo  eorum  aliquando  auderet  iure  haereditario 
sibi  aliquam  partem  terrae  usurpare.  Unde  accidit 
ut  usque  in  hodiernum  diem  tota  insula  solius  regis 
sit,  et  omnes  redditus  eius  ad  ipsum  pertineant^." 
The  not  being  able  to  dispose  of  property  heredi- 
tarily is  the  true  badge  and  proof  of  slavery. 

'  Caesar,  Bell.  GaU.  iv.  3.  The  Franks  imposed  a  tribute  of  hides 
upon  the  Frisians :  we  hear  also  of  tribute  paid  them  by  the  Thurin- 
gians,  Saxons  and  Slavic  races. 

'  A.D.  1066.  Chron,  Manniae.  MS.  Oott.,  Jul.  A.  VII.,  fol.  82. 


192  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Tacitus  draws  a  great  distinction  between  the 
different  degrees  of  servitude  among  the  Germans. 
He  tells  us  that  the  unsuccessful  gambler  who  had 
staked  and  lost  his  liberty  and  the  free  disposal  of 
his  own  body  upon  one  fatal  cast  of  the  dice,  would 
voluntarily  submit  to  be  bound  and  sold'^,  but  that 
it  was  not  usual  for  them  to  reduce  their  other  serfs 
to  the  condition  of  menials ;  they  only  demanded 
from  them  a  certain  amount  of  produce  (or,  un- 
questionably, of  labour  in  the  field  or  pasture),  and 
then  left  them  the  enjoyment  of  their  own  dwell- 
ings and  property^.  The  general  duties  of  the 
house,  beyond  such  supplies,  which  were  provided 
for  among  the  Romans  by  the  ministeriaperfamiliam 
descripta,  were  left  among  the  Germans  to  the  wife 
and  children  of  the  householder  ^.  It  will  be  de- 
sirable to  follow  a  somewhat  similar  distinction  in 

'  "  Servos  conditionis  huius  per  commercia  tradunt,  ut  se  quoque 
pudore  victoriae  exsolvant."  Germ.  xxiv.  Tlxe  last  memter  of  the 
sentence  is  a  bit  of  imaginative  morality  whicli  we  shall  acquit  the 
Germans  of  altogether.  The  very  word  caeteris  in  the  next  sentence 
shows  clearly  enough  that  if  they  did  sell  some  slaves  conditionis  huim, 
they  kept  others  for  menial  functions. 

^  "  Caeteris  servis,  non  in  nostrum  morem,  descriptis  per  familiam 
ministeriis,  utuntur.  Suam  quisque  sedem,  suos  penates  regit.  Fru- 
menti  modum  dominus,  aut  pecoris,  aut  vestis,  ut  colono,  iniungit ;  et 
servus  hactenus  paret."  Germ.  xxv.  This  amounts  to  no  more  than 
the  description  of  a  certain  class  of  our  own  copyholders,  of  the  Sla- 
vonic holder  in  Bohemia  or  Galioia,  and  the  peasant  on  a  noble  session 
in  Hungary. 

^  This  is  the  obvious  meaning  of  the  passage,  which  has  however 
been  disputed,  in  defiance  of  sense  and  Latin :  see  Walther's  edition, 
vol.  iv.  58.  The  general  rule  in  the  text  is  true,  but  where  there 
were  slaves  they  were  used  in  the  house,  imder  the  superintendence  of 
the  family.  This  of  course  applies  more  strongly  to  later  historical 
periods,  when  the  slaves  (domestics)  had  become  much  more  nume- 
rous, and  the  ladies  much  less  domestic. 


CH.  vni.]  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  193 

treating  of  the  diflFerent  kinds  of  slaves ;  and  having 
shown  that  one  class  of  the  unfree  are  those  who 
have  been  partially  dispossessed  by  conquest,  but 
retain  theii*  personal  freedom  in  some  degree,  to 
proceed  to  those  who  are  personally  unfree,  the 
mere  chattels  of  a  lord  who  can  dispose  of  them  at 
his  pleasure,  even  to  the  extent  of  sale,  mutilation 
and  death.  The  class  we  have  hitherto  been  ob- 
serving is  that  intended  by  the  terni  Lset  in  Anglo- 
saxon,  Litus,  Lito,  Lazzo,  etc.  in  German  monu- 
ments ^  and  the  Laeti  of  the  Eomans,  applied  by 
them  to  the  auxiliary  Germans  settled  on  imperial 
land,  and  bound  to  pay  tribute  and  perform  military 
service.  They  formed,  as  Grimm  has  well  observed, 
a  sort  of  middle  class  among  the  unfree  ;  compri- 
sing the  great  majority  of  those  who,  without  being 
absolutely  their  own  masters,  were  yet  placed  some- 
what above  the  lowest  and  most  abject  condition 
of  man,  which  we  call  slavery.  This  condition 
among  our  forefathers  was  termed  ]}e6wet ;  the  ser- 
vus  was  Jjeow,  the  ancilla  J^eowen  ;  or,  as  the  origi- 
nal serfs  of  the  English  were  the  vanquished  Bri- 
tons, Wealh  and  Wyln. 

Without  confining  ourselves  to  the  definition  in 
the  law  of  Henry  the  First,  we  may  distribute  the 
different  kinds  of  slaves  into  classes,  according  to 
the  different  grounds  of  slavery^.     Thus  they  are 

'  Deut.'Rechtsalt.  p.  305. 

^  "  Servi  alii  natura,  alii  facto,  et  alii  empcione,  et  alii  redempcione, 
alii  sua  vel  alterius  dacione  servi,  et  si  quae  sunt  aliae  species  liuius- 
modi  ;  quaa  tamen  omnes  volumus  sub  uno  servitutis  memtro  constitui, 
queiii  casum  ponimus  appellari,  ut  ita  dictum  sit,  servi  alii  casu,  alii 
genitura."     Leg.  Hen.  I.  Ixxvi.  §  3. 

VOL.  I.  0 


194  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

serfs  casu  or  natura,  and  the  serfs  casu  comprise 
serfs  by  the  fortune  of  war,  by  marriage,  by  settle- 
ment, by  voluntary  surrender,  by  crime,  by  superior 
legal  power,  and  by  illegal  power  or  injustice.  The 
remaining  class  are  serfs  natura,  or  by  birth. 

The  serfs  by  fortune  of  war  were  those  who  were 
not  left  under  the  public  law  to  enjoy  a  portion  of 
their  ancient  freedom  and  possessions,  but  were 
actually  reduced  to  a  state  of  prsedial  or  menial 
servitude  by  their  captors,  and  either  reserved  for 
household  drudgery  or  sold,  at  their  arbitrary  wiU. 
The  Cassandra  and  Andromache  of  Grecian  story 
stand  here  side  by  side  with  our  own  German 
Gudrun.  This  part  of  the  subject  has  received  suffi- 
cient illustration  from  the  tale  of  the  thane  Imma, 
already  quoted  from  Beda. 

The  serf  by  marriage  was  the  free  man  or  free 
woman  who  contracted  that  bond  vsdth  a  slave  :  in 
this  case  the  free  party  sank  to  the  condition  of  the 
unfree,  among  some  at  least  of  the  German  races. 
The  Salic  law  is  explicit  upon  this  point  both  with 
respect  to  man  and  woman  ^ :  among  the  Eipuarian 
Franks  it  was  enacted  thus^ :  "  If  a  free  Eipuarian 
woman  hath  followed  a  Eipuarian  serf,  let  the  king 
or  the  count  offer  unto  her  a  sword  and  a  spindle : 
if  she  accept  the  sword,  let  her  therewith  slay  the 
serf;  if  the  spindle,  let  her  abide  with  him  in  ser- 


"  Si  quis  ingenuus  ancillam  alienam  sibi  in  coniugium  sociaverit, 
ipse  cum  ea  in  servitutem  inclinetur."  Lex  Sal.  xiv.  11.    "  Si  ingenua 
femina  aliquemcunque  de  illis  (i.  e.  raptoribus  non  ingenuis)  sua  volun- 
tate  secuta  fuerit,  ingenuitatem  suam  perdat."  Lex  Sal.  xiv.  7. 
^  Lex  Kip.  Iviii.  18.   ' 


CH.  vm.]  THE  UNFREE.    THE  SERF.  195 

vitude."  In  this  case  the  Burgundian  law^  com- 
manded both  parties  to  be  slain ;  but  if  the  rela- 
tives of  the  woman  would  not  put  her  to  death,  she 
became  a  serf  of  the  king.  Saxo  Grammaticus  cites 
a  similar  law  for  Denmark  2.  There  is  no  evidence 
of  the  Anglosaxon  practice  in  this  respect,  but  it 
appears  unlikely  that  the  case  should  be  of  com- 
mon occurrence.  Probably  purchase  and  emanci- 
pation always  preceded  such  marriages,  and  the 
law  of  Henry  the  First  makes  no  mention  of  this 
among  the  grounds  of  slavery  ^. 

The  serf  by  settlement  is  he  who  has  taken  up 
his  abode  in  a  district  exclusively  inhabited  by  the 
unfree ;  and  to  this  refers  the  German  expression 
"  Die  luft  macht  eigen,"  i.  e.  the  air  makes  the  serf. 
There  is  no  distinct  Anglosaxon  provision  on  the 
subject,  but  perhaps  we  may  include  in  this  class 
some  at  least  of  those  who  taking  refuge  on  a  lord's 
land,  and  among  his  socmen,  without  any  absolute 
and  formal  surrender  of  their  freedom,  did  actu- 
ally become  his  serfs  and  liable  to  the  services  due 
to  him  from  all  their  neighbours  *.     The  generality 

'  Lex  Burg.  xxxv.  2,  3.  '  Hist.  Dan.  lib.  v.  p.  85. 

^  The  following  proverba  are  founded  upon  this  legal  custom  : — 
"  Trittst  du  meine  henne,  so  wirst  du  mein  hahn." 
"  Die  tinfreie  hand  zieht  die  freie  nach  sich." 
"  En  formariage  le  pire  emporte  le  bon." 
*  Such  may  also  have  been  malefactors,  who  sought  an  asylum  in 
chm'ch  or  other  privileged  lands,  and  who  sometimes  formed  a  very 
considerable  number  of  dependants   or  retainers :  thus,  "  Contraxit 
universam  iuventutem  Houlandiae  [Holland  in  Lincolnshire]  strenu- 
issimus  comes  Algarus, ....  una  cum  cohorte  Croylandiae  monasterii, 
videlicet  CC  bellatoribus  robustissimis,  eo  quod  maxima  pars  illorum 
de  fugitivis  fuerat."  Hist.  Ingulf,  p.  866. 

o2 


196  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

however  of  such  cases  fall  under  the  next  following 
head,  viz. — 

The  serfs  by  surrender,  the  sua  datione  servus  of 
Henry's  law,  the  servus  dedititius,  and  giafj^rsel  of 
the  Norse  law.     Among  these  Grimm  numbers  the 
serfs  whose  voluntary  submission  so  much  surprised 
the  Roman  philosopher.    Even  the  law  of  the  Ger- 
mans, so  generally  favourable  to  liberty,  contem- 
plates and  provides  for  the  case  of  such  a  voluntary 
servitude  ^    This  might  arise  in  various  ways.     For 
example,  a  time  of  severe  scarcity,  such  as  are  only 
too  often  recorded  in  our  ancient  annals,  unques- 
tionably drove  even  the  free  to  the  cruel  alternative 
of  either  starvation  or  servitude :    "  Subdebant  se 
pauperes  servitio,  ut  quantulumcunque  de  alimento 
porrigerent,"  says  Gregory  of  Tours  ^j  Gildas  tells 
us  a  similar  tale  of  the  Britons^ ;  and  even  as  late 
as  the  Norman  conquest  we  find  Geatfleed,  a  lady, 
directing  by  her  will  the  manumission  of  all  those 
who  had  bent  their  heads  in  the  evil  days  for  food*. 

'  "  Si  liber  homo  spontanea  voluntate  vel  forte  necessitate  coaotus, 
nobili,  seu  libero,  seu  etiam  lito,  in  personam  et  in  servitium  liti  se 
subdiderit."  Lex  Fres.  xi.  1.  "  Ut  nullum  liberum  liceat  inservii-e. . .  . 
quamvis  pauper  sit,  tamen  libertatem  suam  non  perdat  nee  hereditatem 
suam,  nisi  ex  spontanea  voluntate  se  alicui  tradere  voluerit,  boc  potes- 
tatem  habeat  faciendi."  Lex  Bajuv.  vi.  3.  The  Anglosaxon  law  gave 
this  power  of  voluntary  surrender  to  a  boy  of  thirteen.  See  Theod. 
Poenit.  xxix,     Thorpe,  ii.  19. 

^  Gregor.  Turon.  vii.  45. 

'  "  Interea  fames  dira  ao  famosissima  vagis  ac  nutabundis  haeret, 
quae  multos  eorum  cruentis  compellit  praedonibus  sine  dilatione  victas 
dare  manus,  ut  pauxillum  ad  refocillandam  animam  cibi  caperent. ' 
Hist.  Brit.  cap.  xvii. 

*  "  Ealle  'Sa  men  ^e  heonon  heora  heafod  for  hyra  mete  on  tSam 
yflum  dagum."  Cod.  Dip.  No.  925.  The  instance  is,  I  believe,  a  soli- 
tary one  in  our  records,  but  the  cases  must  have  been  numerous. 


CH.  VIII.]  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  197 

Another  was,  no  doubt,  debt,  incurred  either  through 
poverty  or  crime ;  and  when  the  days  of  fierce  and 
cruel  warfare  had  passed  away,  this  must  have  been 
the  most  fertile  source  of  servitude.  I  have  not 
found  among  the  Anglosaxon  remains  any  exam- 
ple of  slavery  voluntarily  incurred  by  the  insolvent 
debtor,  but  the  whole  course  of  analogy  is  in  favour 
of  its  existence,  and  Marculf  supplies  us  with  the 
formulary  by  which,  among  the  Franks,  the  debtor 
surrendered  his  freedom  to  the  creditor.  It  may  be 
presumed  that  this  servitude  had  a  term,  and  that 
a  certain  period  of  servile  labour  was  considered 
equivalent  to  the  debt.  The  case  of  crime  was  un- 
doubtedly a  very  common  one,  especially  as  those 
whose  necessities  were  the  most  likely  to  bring 
them  in  collision  with  the  law  were  those  also  who 
were  least  able  to  fulfil  its  requirements,  by  pay- 
ment of  the  fines  attached  to  their  offences.  The 
criminal  whose  own  means  were  insufficient,  and 
whose  relatives  or  lord  would  not  assist  him  to  make 
up  the  legal  fine  he  had  incurred,  was  either  com- 
pelled to  surrender  himself  to  the  plaintiff,  or  to 
some  third  party  who  paid  the  sum  for  him,  by 
agreement  with  the  aggrieved  party.  This  'was 
technically  called    Jjingian^,    and  such   a  serf  was 

'  "And  eao  teo  hafalS  gefredd  'Sa  men  «a  heo  Hngede  set  Cwses- 
patrike ; "  And  she  hath  also  freed  the  men  whom  she  interceded  for 
with  Ooapatriok.  Cod.  Dip.  No.  925.  Marculf  gives  the  Frankish 
formulary,  as  follows ;  it  is  the  case  of  one  who  has  been  redeemed 
from  capital  punishment:  "Et  ego  de  rebus  meis,  imde  yestra  bene- 
ficia  rependere  debuissem,  non  habeo ;  ideo  pro  hoc  statum  ingenuitatis 
meae  vobis  visus  sum  obnoxiasse,  ita  ut  ab  hac  die  de  vestro  servitio 
penitus  non  discedam."   Form.  Marculf.  ii,  28. 


198  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

called  a  witej^eow,  convict,  or  criminal  slave.    These 
are  the  servi  redemptione  of  Henry  the  First. 

Serfs  by  force  or  power  are  not  those  comprised 
in  the  first  class  of  these  divisions,  or  serfs  by  the 
fortune  of  war :  these  of  course  have  lost  their  free- 
dom through  superior  force.  But  the  class  under 
consideration  are  such  as  have  been. reduced  to  ser- 
vitude by  the  legal  act  of  those  who  had  a  right  to 
dispose  of  them ;  as,  for  instance,  a  son  or  daughter 
by  the  act  of  the  father  i.  It  is  painful  to  record 
a  fact  so  abhorrent  to  our  Christian  feelings,  but 
there  cannot  be  the  least  doubt  that  this  right  was 
both  admitted  and  acted  upon.  The  father,  upon 
whose  will  it  literally  depended  whether  his  child 
should  live  or  not,  had  a  right  at  a  subsequent  pe- 
riod to  decide  whether  the  lot  of  that  child  should 
be  freedom  or  bondage  ^.  Illegitimate  children,  the 
offspring  of  illicit  intercourse  with  his  wyln  or 
Jjeowen,  may  have  formed  the  majority  of  those  thus 
disposed  of  by  a  father :  but  in  times  of  scarcity, 
it  is  to  be  feared  that  even  the  issue  of  legitimate 

'  The  wife,  by  the  act  of  the  husband,  I  think  very  doubtful,  in  point 
of  right.  In  point  of  fact  this  case  may  have  occurred  much  more  fre- 
quently than  our  records  vouch. 

^  The  illegitimate  offspring  of  his  ovras-wife,  a  husband  was  not 
likely  to  spare.  An  old  German  tale  records  this  fact.  Her  lord  re- 
turning from  a  long  absence  and  finding-  a  child  which  could  not  be 
his  own  in  the  house,  was  told  by  the  faithless  mother,  that  when 
walking  in  the  fields  a  flake  of  snow  had  fallen  into  her  bosom  and 
impregnated  her.  Afterwards  the  husband  took  the  child  to  Italy 
and  sold  him  there,  excusing  himself  to  the  mother  by  the  assertion 
that  the  heat  of  the  sun  had  melted  the  snow-child : — 

"  De  nive  conceptum  quern  mater  adultera  flnxit ; 
Hunc  dominus  vendens  liquefactum  sole  retulit." 


CH.  vin.J  THE  UNFREB.    THE  SERF.  199 

marriage  was  not  always  spared  i.  The  Frisians, 
when  oppressed  by  the  amount  of  Roman  tribute, 
sold  their  wives  and  children :  "  Ac  primo  boves 
ipsos,  mox  agros,  postremo  corpora  coniugum  aut 
liberorum  servitio  tradebant^:"  this  is  however  an 
exceptional  case,  and  the  sale  of  wives  and  children 
appears  only  to  have  been  resorted  to  as  a  last  re- 
source. But  the  very  restriction  to  the  exercise  of 
this  right,  within  particular  limits  of  time — which  we 
may  believe  the  merciful  intervention  of  the  church 
to  have  brought  about — -speaks  only  too  plainly  for 
its  existence  in  England.  Even  as  late  as  the  end 
of  the  seventh  century,  and  after  Christianity  had 
been  established  for  nearly  one  hundred  years  in 
this  country,  we  find  the  following  very  distinct 
and  clear  recognitions  of  the  right,  in  books  of 
discipline  compiled  by  two  several  archbishops  for 
the  guidance  of  their  respective  clergy.  In  the 
Poenitential  of  Theodore,  archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
occurs  this  passage :  "Pater  filium  suum  septem 
annorum,  necessitate  compulsus,  potestatem  habet 
tradere  in  servitium ;  deinde,  sine  voluntate  filii, 
licentiam  tradendi  non  habet  ^."     In  the  somewhat 


'  Lingard  (A.  S.  Church,  i.  45)  accuses  the  pagan  Saxons  of  selling 
their  children  into  foreign  slavery.  I  am  not  sure  that  this  is  not  as- 
serted too  strongly  by  this  estimable  author,  who  appears  imjustly  to 
depreciate  the  Saxons,  in  order  to  enhance  the  merit  of  their  con- 
verters. I  admit  the  probability  of  the  fact,  only  because  the  right  is 
a  direct  corollary  from  the  paternal  power,  and  because  Archbishops 
Theodore  and  Ecgberht  (the  first  a  Roman  missionary)  recognize  it ; 
but  I  cannot  suppose  its  exercise  to  have  been  common. 

^  Tac.  Annal.  iv.  72. 

'  Theodori  Arch.  Cant.,  Liber  Poenitentialis,  xxviii.  Thorpe,  A.  S. 
Laws,  ii.  19. 


200  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

later  Confessionale  of  Ecgberht,  archbishop  of  York, 
we  find:  "Pater  potest  filium  suum,  magna  neces- 
sitate compulsus,  in  servitutem  tradere,  usque  ad 
septimum  annum  ;  deinde,  sine  voluntate  filii,  eum 
tradere  non  potest  '■."  It  is  however  very  remark- 
able that  in  the  Poenitential  of  the  same  Ecgberht 
the  sale  of  a  child  or  near  relative  is  put  down  as 
an  offence  punishable  by  excommunication 2.  These 
are  the  servi  alterius  daiione  of  Henry  the  First. 

The  next  head  includes  the  serfs  by  reason  of 
crime.  The  distinction  between  these  and  the  class 
of  criminals  who  became  slaves  through  compact 
or  redemption,  is  that  in  their  case  servitude  was 
the  direct  punishment  of  their  oifence,  and  not 
merely  an  indirect  and  mediate  consequence.  It 
seems  to  me  at  least  that  this  sense  strictly  lies  at 
the  foundation  of  two  laws  of  Eadweard,  ^Elfred's 
son  ;  of  these  the  former  says^,  "If  any  one  through 
conviction  of  theft  forfeit  his  freedom,  and  deliver 
himself  up,  and  his  kindred  forsake  him,  and  he 

^  Confessionale  Ecgberliti  Arcli.  Ebor.  xxvii.  Thorpe,  ii.  153. 

'  The  only  way  of  getting  rid  of  this  strange  contradiction  is,  either 
to  assume  the  passage  to  be  a  later  interpolation,  which  there  is  no 
ground  for,  save  the  contradiction  itself;  or  to  take  the  passage  in  con- 
nection with  Theodor.  Poen.  xlii.  §  3,  4,  5,  which  refer  to  sale  of  a 
Christian  among  Jews  or  Heathens,  and  generally  to  fraudulent  or  il- 
legal sale.  But  then,  one  cannot  understand  why  the  words  "infantem 
suum  proprium,  vel  proximum  suum  cognatum"  should  have  been  in- 
troduced by  Ecgberht,  though  omitted  by  Theodore.  Perhaps  we  may 
reconcile  the  passages,  by  assuming  Ecgberht  to  refer  to  an  illegal  sale, 
viz.  when  the  child  was  above  seven  years  old,  but  still  in  the  same 
category  as  those  for  whose  safety  Theodore  provides  by  the  same  ec- 
clesiastical penalty.  The  child  or  very  near  relation  were  precisely 
those  who  were  most  liable  to  be  in  "alteram  regionem  seduoti, 
furati,"  etc. 

''  Leg.  Eadw.  §  9. 


CH.  VIII.]  THE  UNPREE.    THE  SERF.  201 

know  not  who  shall  make  hot  for  him ;  let  him  then 
be  worthy  of  the  J)e6wwork  which  thereunto  ap- 
pertaineth ;  and  let  the  wer  abate  from  the  kin- 
dred." Again,  "If  a  freeman  work  upon  a  festival 
day,  let  him  lose  his  freedom,  or  pay  the  wite  or 
lahslite^."  This  alternative  is  an  alleviation  of  the 
strict  law  :  but  as  forfeiture  undoubtedly  followed 
upon  theft  and  other  offences,  the  thief  could  not 
expect  to  make  hot  for  himself,  and  was  always 
exposed  to  the  danger  of  incurring  slavery,  should 
another  make  it  for  him.  It  is  however  possible 
that  his  relations  may  have  interfered  to  save  him, 
without  the  reducing  him  to  a  servus  dedititius ;  or 
even  if  he  were  so  reduced,  he  became  the  serf  of 
him  that  engaged  (Jjingode)  for  him ;  whereas,  if 
not  rescued  at  all,  he  must  have  been  a  fiscal  serf, 
in  the  hands  of  the  crown  or  the  gerefa,  its  officer. 
There  exists  therefore  a  perceptible  difference  be- 
tween the  witejjeow  whom  the  law  made  so,  (even 
though  it  permitted  a  merciful  alternative,)  and 
the  witej^eow  whose  punishment  would  have  been  a 
mulct  which  exceeded  his  means.  The  law  of  other 
German  tribes  numbers  slavery  among  its  punish- 
ments without  any  reservation  at  all :  thus  among 
the  Visigoths,  he  that  assisted  in  the  escape  of  a 
serf,  and  neither  restored  him  nor  his  worth  to  the 
owner,  was  to  become  a  slave  in  his  place  2.  By 
the  Bavarian  law,  he  that  could  not  pay  a  wergyld 
due  from  him,  was  to  be  enslaved  together  with  his 
wife  and  children^.  Grimm*  cites  the  following  case : 

■-  Ead.  and  Gii«.  §  7.  '  Leg.  Vfeig.  ix.  §  1,  2. 

"  Leg.  Bajuv.  i.  §  11.  ■*  D.  Rechtsalt.  p.  329. 


202  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i, 

"  Richilda,  quae  libertatem  suam  fornicando  pol- 
luit,  amisit ....  filiae  illorum  liberae  permaneant, 
....  nisi  forte  adulterio  vel  fornicatione  poUuan- 
tur."  It  is  true  that  the  Anglosaxon  laws  do  not 
give  us  any  enactment  o£  a  corresponding  nature : 
nevertheless  I  entertain  no  doubt  that  incontinence 
vpas  a  ground  of  slavery  in  the  case  both  of  man 
and  vpoman.  Toward  the  end  of  the  ninth  century, 
Denewulf,  bishop  of  Winchester,  leased  the  lands 
of  Alresford  to  a  relative  of  his  own,  on  condition 
of  a  yearly  rent :  "Is  equidem  insipiens,  adulterans, 
stuprum,  propriam  religiose  pactatam  abominans, 
scortum  diligens,  libidinose  commisit.  Quo  reatu, 
omni  substantia  peculiali  recte  privatus  est,  et  prae- 
fatum  rus  ab  eo  abstractum  rex  huius  patriae  suae 
ditioni  avidus  devenire  iniuste  optavit^."  However 
unjust  the  canons  of  Winchester  might  think  it,  it 
is  clear  that  the  Witena-gemot  did  not ;  for  the 
bishop  was  obliged  to  pay  120  mancusses  in  gold  to 
the  king,  to  have  back  his  own  land.  Again  in  the 
year  1002,  we  hear  of  a  lady  forfeiting  her  lands  to 
the  king,  by  reason  of  incontinence  2.  The  conse- 
quences of  this  destitution  can  hardly  have  been 
other  than  servitude ;  and  it  may  be  at  once  admitted 
that  where  there  were  no  lands  to  forfeit,  servitude 
was  the  recognized  punishment  of  the  offence. 
Theodore  ^  when  apportioning  the  penance  due  to  it, 
says,  "Si  intra  viginti  annos  puella  et  adolescens 
peccaverint,  i  annum,  et  in  secundo  iii  quadragesi- 
mas  ac  legitimas  ferias.     Si  propter  hoc  peccatum 

1  Cod.  Dip.  No.  601.  =  Ibid.  No.  1296. 

=■  Lib.  Poenit.  xvi.  §  3.   Thorpe,  ii.  9. 


CH.  vm.]  THE  UNFREE.    THE  SERF.  203 

servitio  humano  addicti  sunt,  iii  quadragesimas." 
Again,  "Maritus  si  ipse  seipsum  in  furto  aut  forni- 
catione  servum  facit,  vel  quocunque  peccato^,"  etc. 

The  last  division  of  the  servi  casu  comprises 
those  who  have  been  reduced  to  slavery  by  violence 
or  fraud,  in  short  illegally.  Illegitimate  children, 
poor  relations,  unfriended  strangers,  young  persons 
without  power  of  self-defence,  may  thus  have  been 
seduced  or  forced  into  a  servile  condition  of  life, 
escape  from  which  was  always  difficult,  inasmuch 
as  there  is  necessarily  a  prima  facie  case  against 
the  serf,  and  he  can  have  no  standing  in  the  court 
composed  only  of  the  free.  To  this  head  seem  re- 
ferable the  passages  I  have  already  alluded  to  in 
Theodore's  Poenitential^,  and  which  I  will  now  cite 
at  length  :  "Si  quis  Christianus  alteram  Christia- 
num  suaserit,  ac  in  alteram  regionem  seduxerit, 
ibique  eum  vendiderit  pro  proprio  servo,  ille  non 
est  dignus  inter  Christianos  requiem  habere,  donee 
redimat  eum  et  reducat  ad  proprium  locum."  And 
again :  "  Si  quis  Christianus  alterum  Christianum 
vagantem  reppererit,  eumque  furatus  fuerit  ac  ven- 
diderit, non  debet  habere  inter  Christianos  requiem, 
donee  redimat  eum,  et  pro  illo  furto  septem  annos 
poeniteat^." 

The  other  great  division  includes  all  the  servi 
natura,  nativi,  or  serfs  by  reason  of  unfree  birth; 
and  as  these  are  necessarily  the  children  either  of 
parents  who  are  both  unfree,  or  (under  particular 
circumstances)  of  one  unfree  parent,  it  follows  that 

'  Thorpe,  ii.  9,  note  4.  "^  Supra,  p.  200,  note  2, 

*  Lib.  Poenit.  Theod.  xlii.  §  4.  5.     See  also  xxiii.  §  13. 


204  THE  SAXONS  IX  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

their  hereditary  condition  may  arise  from  any  one 
of  the  conditions  heretofore  under  examination. 
All  the  legitimate  children  of  two  serfs  are  them- 
selves irrevocably  serfs  ^ :  but  some  distinctions 
arise  vphere  the  parents  are  of  unequal  condition, 
as  vi'here  the  mother  is  free,  the  father  unfree,  and 
vice  versa.  In  this  respect  the  law  was  very  dif- 
ferent among  the  diifere'nt  tribes  :  the  Swedish  law 
declared  in  favour  of  liberty  2,  the  German  generally 
the  other  way  ^.  The  Sachsenspiegel  decides  that 
the  children  follow  the  father's  right  *,  and  similarly 
the  law  of  Henry  the  First  ^  has,  "  Si  quis  de  servo 
patre  natus  sit  et  matre  libera,  pro  servo  reddatur 
occisus ;"  and  again,  "  Si  pater  sit  liber  et  mater 
ancilla,  pro  libero  reddatur  occisus ;"  on  the  general 
principle  that  "  semper  a  patre  non  a  matre  ge- 
neracionis  ordo  texitur,"  which  Fortescue  confirms, 
saying^,  "  Lex  Angliae  nunquam  matris,  sed  semper 
patris  conditionem  imitari  partum  iudicat,  ut  ex 
libera  etiam  ex  nativa  non  nisi  liberum  liber  ge- 
neret,  et  non  nisi  servum  in  matrimonio  procreare 
potest  servus."  Fleta's  argument  rests  upon  the 
same  doctrine'''.  Glanville  however  appears  to  adopt 
the  contrary  view®,  which  agrees  with  the  maxim 

'  Tkeod.  Poen.  xvi.  §  33.     Ecgb.  Poen.  xxv. 

""  Deut.  Eechtsalt.  p.  324.  ^  Ibid.  p.  324. 

*  Sachs,  iii.  73.  -  Leg.  Hen.  I.  Ixxvii.  §  1,  2. 

°  Commend,  cap.  xlii.  '  Lib.  i.  cap.  3.  §  2. 

'  "  Sunt  autem  nativi  a  prima  nativitate  sua ;  quemadmodum  si  quis 
fuerit  procreatus  ex  nativo  et  nativa,  ille  quidem  nativus  nasoitur. 
Idem  est  si  ex  patre  libera  et  matre  nativa.  Sed  si  ex  matre  libera  et 
patre  nativo,  idem  est  dicendum  quantum  ad  status  integritatem."  Lib. 
V.  cap.  6.  But  tbe  passage  in  italic  is  wanting  in  some  manuscripts, 
and  may  possibly  bave  been  the  gloss  or  addition  of  a  civilian. 


CH.  viii.l  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  205 

of  the  civil  law,  "Partus  sequitur  ventrem."  To 
the  English  principle  I  am  bound  to  give  my  ad- 
hesion, inasmuch  as  the  natural  and  the  original 
social  law  can  recognize  none  but  the  father,  either 
in  the  generation,  or  in  the  subsequent  rule,  of  the 
family :  whatever  alleviation  the  practices  of  chi- 
valry, the  worship  of  the  Virgin  mother,  and  the 
Christian  doctrine  of  the  equality  of  man  and  wo- 
man before  God,  may  have  introduced,  the  original 
feeling  is  on  the  father's  side,  and  the  foundations 
of  our  law  are  based  upon  the  all-sufficiency  of 
his  right.  A  woman  is  in  the  mund  or  keeping  of 
a  man;  society  exists  for  men  only,  that  is,  for 
women  merely  as  far  as  they  are  represented  by  a 
man. 

That  this  original  right  was  interfered  with  by 
the  law  of  property  is  not  denied.  But  here  dif- 
ferent cases  are  to  be  considered.  First,  whether 
the  serf  or  nativa  is  the  property  of  the  party  who 
unites  with  him  or  her.  Secondly  whether  the  free 
party  unite  with  some  other  owner's  serf  or  neif ; 
next,  whether  the  issue  are  born  in  wedlock  or  not ; 
and  lastly  how  far  the  public  law  and  right  is  in- 
volved in  the  question  of  freedom  and  servitude. 
The  last  consideration  in  fact  involves  the  first, 
because,  under  the  first,  except  in  the  case  of  hardly 
intelligible  neglect,  marriage  could  never  take  place 
between  two  unequal  parties  at  all :  emancipation 
must  have  preceded  the  ceremony  ;  while  the  civil 
law  would  of  course  rule  that  the  ceremony  itself, 
taking  place  by  consent,  was  an  act  of  emancipa- 
tion not  to  be  gainsaid.    It  is  therefore  with  regard 


206  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

to  third  parties  only  that  a  question  can  arise  i. 
There  is  no  proof  that  such  a  question  ever  did  arise 
among  the  Anglosaxons,  or  that  it  was  thought 
needful  to  provide  for  it  by  law  :  and  the  earlier 
evidences  with  which  this  book  has  especially  to  do 
are  either 'entirely  silent,  or  so  general  in  their  ex- 
pressions that  we  cannot  decide  from  them  upon  a 
particular  case.  In  fact  the  whole  argument  is  re- 
duced to  the  second  head,  viz.  where  one  parent  is 
the  property  of  a  third  party,  and  where  the  child 
is  born  in  lawful  wedlock ;  for  a  child  not  so  born 
is  not  subject  to  any  law  which  binds  the  parents,  is 
nullius  Jilius,  and  can  as  little  be  injured  as  advan- 
taged by  the  law. 

In  the  strict  Anglosaxon  law  there  is  no  definite 
decision  on  these  points  :  the  codes  of  other  Ger- 
man races,  at  the  oldest  period,  are  equally  silent. 
In  later  times  indeed  we  have  determinations ;  but 
these,  as  we  have  observed,  are  contradictory. 
Perhaps  we  may  take  the  doctrine  of  the  Sachsen- 
spiegel,  coinciding  as  it  does  with  the  opinion  of 
many,  probably  a  majority,  of  our  own  law-sages, 
as  the  original  one,  especially  as  it  is  the  only  one 
in  accordance  with  other  details  of  family  life,  and 
with  the  supreme  law  of  nature  itself  which  leaves 

'  Of  course  (except  under  circumstances  ■wHch  the  Christian  clergy, 
and  probably  even  the  heathen  priesthood, — and  if  neither  of  these, 
yet  the  universal  human  feeling — would  condemn,)  the  issue  of  such 
marriage  could  not  have  been  treated  as  unfree,  during  the  life  of  the 
father.  But  a  question  might  arise  after  death,  and  on  subsequent  in- 
heritance by  third  parties.  And  cases  might  occur  where  the  public 
right  rendered  it  necessary  to  take  care  that  the  unfree  should  not  en- 
joy the  advantages  of  freedom. 


CH.  vni.]  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  207 

to  the  father  the  decision  as  to  the  life  or  death  of 
the  child,  as  to  its  liberty  or  slavery.  In  this  sense 
then  I  agree  with  Sir  John  Fortescue  and  Sir  Ed- 
ward Coke^.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  we  are 
dealing  now  with  the  condition  of  the  offspring, 
not  of  the  parent :  the  uneertainty  that  prevails 
with  respect  to  the  latter,  in  the  Anglosaxon  law, 
and  the  contradictory  enactments  of  other  German 
codes  have  been  already  noticed. 

But  all  that  has  been  said  applies  solely  to  the 
case  of  children  born  in  lawful  wedlock ;  and 
almost  all  the  apparent  contradictions  which  have 
been  noticed  in  our  own  law,  arise  from  a  want 
of  clear  distinction  on  this  point.  The  child  of  a 
free  father  and  unfree  mother,  if  the  parents  were 
not  married,  remained  to  the  lord  of  the  neif,  ac- 
cording to  our  expressive  proverb,  "  Mine  is  the 
calf  that  is  born  of  my  cow  2."  In  Fleta's  words  ^ 
the  distinction  is  drawn  most  clearly,  and  they  may 
therefore  stand  here  in  place  of  my  own :  "  Servi 
autem  aut  nascuntur  aut  fiunt ;  nascuntur  quidem 
ex  nativo  et  nativa  solutis  vel  copulatis,  et  eius  erit 
servus  in  cuius  potestate  nasci  contigerit  * ;  dum 
tamen  de  soluta  nativa,  domini  loci,  quia  sequitur 
conditionem  matris,  a  quocunque  fuerit  genitus, 
libero   vel  nativo^.     Si  autem  copulati  fuerint  et 

>  Co.  Litt.  §  187,  188. 

^  Take  an  instance,  though  with  a  wider  application,  from  Shak- 
speare,  King  John,  act  i.  so.  2. 

'  Lib.  i.  cap.  3.  §  2. 

^  That  is,  if  the  serfs  of  two  different  lords,  then  the  child  to  follow 
the  mother. 

'  Jn  the  event  of  there  being  no  marriage.  The  case  of  a  marriage 
is  very  diiferent,  and  provided  for  in  the  next  sentence. 


208  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

genitus  fuerit  partus  a  libero,  licet  a  nativa,  partus 
erit  liber ;  et  si  de  servo  et  libera  in  matrimonio, 
servus  erit."  Thus,  here  again  the  oifspring  fol- 
lows the  father,  as  soon  as  there  is  a  marriage  to 
determine  that  there  is  an  oifspring  at  all,  in  law ; 
but  if  there  be  no  marriage,  the  chattel  thrown  into 
the  world,  like  any  other  waif  or  stray  belongs 
domino  loci ;  it  has  a  value,  can  be  worked  or  sold ; 
it  is  treasure-trove  of  a  sort,  and  as  it  belongs  to 
nobody  else,  falls  to  the  lord,  as  a  compensation 
probably  for  the  loss  of  his  neif's  services  during 
pregnancy' and  the  nonage  of  the  child^. 

Whatever  the  origin  of  serfage  may  have  been, 
it  can  hardly  be  questioned  that  the  lot  of  the  serf 
was  a  hard  one;  and  this  perhaps  not  so  much 
from  the  amount  of  labour  required  of  him,  as 
from  the  total  irresponsibility  of  the  master,  in  the 
eye  of  the  law,  as  to  all  dealings  between  himself 
and  his  j'eow.  The  Christian  clergy  indeed  did  all 
they  could  to  mitigate  its  hardships,  but  when  has 
even  Christianity  itself  been  triumphant  over  the 
selfishness  and  the  passions  of  the  mass  of  men  I 
The  early  pagan  Germans,  though  in  general  they 
treated  their  serfs  well,  yet  sometimes  slew  them, 
under  the  influence  of  unbridled  passion :  "  Verbe- 
rare  servum  ac  vinculis  et  opere  coercere  rarum. 
Occidere  solent,    non  disciplina  et  severitate,  sed 

'  Mr.  Allen  in  his  valuable  notes  upon  the  law  of  Henry  the  First 
(published  by  Thorpe  in  his  Anglosaxon  Laws,  i.  609-631)  has  some 
remarks  upon  the  whole  subject,  as  considered  by  our  Norman  jurists. 
His  conclusions  coincide  generally  with  mine,  and  he  says  (p.  628), 
"  The  Mirror  [Sachsenspiegel]  makes  the  marriage  of  the  parent  an 
essential  condition  to  the  liberty  of  the  offspring,"  etc. 


CH.  VIII.]  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  209 

impetu  et  ira,  iit  inimicum,  nisi  quod  impune  est'^." 
The  church  affixed  a  special  penance  to  the  man- 
slaughter of  a  woman  by  her  mistress,  impetu  et 
ira, — an  event  which  probably  was  not  unusual, 
considering  the  power  of  a  lord  over  his  \ie6wen 
or  female  slave, — and  generally,  a  penance  for  the 
slaughter  of  a  serf  by  his  lord  without  judicial  au- 
thority 2. 

In  contemplation  of  law,  in  fact,  the  slave  is  the 
absolute  property  of  his  lord,  a  chattel  to  be  dis- 
posed of  at  the  lord's  pleasure,  and  having  a  value 
only  for  the  benefit  of  the  lord,  or  of  some  public 
authority  in  his  place.  The  serf  cannot  represent 
himself  or  others :  his  interests  must  be  guarded  by 
others,  for  he  himself  has  no  standing  in  any  public 
court.  He  is  not  in  any  friSborh,  or  association 
for  mutual  guarantee,  for  he  has  nothing  of  his 
own  to  defend,  and  no  power  to  defend  what  another 
has.  If  he  be  slain  by  a  stranger,  his  lord  claims 
the  damages,  and  not  his  children  :  if  the  lord  him- 
self slay  him,  it  is  but  the  loss  of  so  much  value, 
— a  horse,  an  ox,  gone — more  or  less.     Out  of  his 

'  Tao.  Germ.  xxv. 

^  "  Si  faemina,  furore  zeli  accensa,  flagellis  verberaverit  ancillam 
suam,  ita  ut  infra  diem  tertium  animam  cruciatu  effundat,  et  quod  in- 
certum  sit,  voliintate  an  casu  Occident ;  si  voluntate,  vii  annos ;  si  casii, 
per  quinquennii  tempora,  ac  legitima  poenitentia,  a  communione  pla- 
cuit  abstinere."  Poen.  Tbeod.  xxi.  §  13.  "  Si  quis  servum  proprium, 
sine  couscientia  iudicis,  occiderit,  excommunicatione  vel  poenitentia 
biennii  reatum  sanguinis  emundabit."  Ibid.  §  12.  Even  as  late  as  the 
seventeenth  century  in  France,  it  appears  that  it  was  usual  to  flog  the 
valets,  pages  and  maids,  in  noble  houses.  Tallemant  des  Reaux  men- 
tions a  riot  which  arose  in  Paris  from  a  woman's  being  whipped  to 
death  by  her  mistress,  in  August  1651.  See  his  Historiettes,  viii.  80  ; 
x.  255,  etc. 

VOL.  I.  P 


210  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [300K  i. 

death  no  feud  can  arise,  for  the  relatives  who  al- 
lowed him  to  fall  into,  or  remain  in  slavery,  have 
renounced  the  family  bond,  and  forfeited  both  the 
wergyld  and  the  mund.     If  he  be  guilty  of  wrong, 
he  cannot  make  compensation  in  money  or  in  chat- 
tels ;  for  he  can  have  no  property  of  his  own  save 
his  skin:  thus  his  skin  must  pay  for  him^,  and  the 
lash  be  his  bitter  portion.     He  cannot  defend  him- 
self by  his  own  oath  or  the  oaths  of  friends  and 
compurgators,  but,  if  accused,  must  submit  to  the 
severe,  uncertain  and  perilous  test  of  the  ordeal. 
And  if,  when  thus  hunted  down,  he  be  found  guilty,  • 
severe   and  ignominious  punishment, — amounting, 
in  a  case  of  theft,  to  death  by  flogging  for  men,  by 
burning  for  women, — is  reserved  for  him^.     Na- 
turally and  originally  there  can  be  no  limitation  in 
the  amount  or  the  character  of  labour  imposed  upon 
him,  and  no   stipulation  for  reciprocal  advantage 
in  the  form  of  protection,  food  or  shelter.     Among 
the  Saxons  the  witelieow  at  least  appears  to  have 
been  bound  to  the  soil,  adscrtptus glebae^,  conveyed 
with  it  under  the  comprehensive  phrase  "mid mete 
and  mid  mannum:"  though  in  some  few  cases  we 
can  trace  a  power,  vested  perhaps  only  in  certain 
public   authorities,  of  transferring  the  slave  from 
one  estate  to  another*.  Last,  but  most  fearful  of  all. 


'  The  compensation  for  a  flogging  was  called  hidgeld. 

"  Leg.  ^«elst.  iii.  §  6.     Thorpe,  i.  219. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  311,  1079. 

*  Ibid.  No.  311.  The  serfs  mentioned  in  this  document  Were  at  first 
attached  to  the  royal  vill  of  Bensington  ;  but  were  now  transferred  to 
the  land  of  the  church  at  Radnor,  with  their  offspring,  and  their 
posterity  for  ever. 


CH.  vm.]  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SEBF.  211 

the  taint  of  blood  descended  to  his  offspring,  and 
the  innocent  progeny,  to  the  remotest  generations, 
were  born  to  the  same  miserable  fate  as  bowed  down 
the  guilty  or  unfortunate  parent. 

But  yet  there  was  a  gleam  of  hope :  one  solitary 
ray  that  made  even  the  surrounding  darkness  to- 
lerable, and  may  have  cheered  the  broken-hearted 
serf  through  years  of  unrequited  toil  and  suffering. 
The  law  that  reduced  him  to  slavery  made  it  also 
possible  that  he  should  be  restored  to  freedom.  It 
did  not  shut  from  him  this  blessing,  however  dis- 
tant it  might  seem.  Tacitus  knew  of  liberti  among 
the  Germans,  men  who  had  been  slaves,  had  been 
manumitted,  and  were  free^.  Thus  in  yet  pagan 
times,  general  kindliness  of  disposition,  habits  of  do- 
mestic intercourse,  perhaps  the  suggestions  of  self- 
interest,  may  have  tended  to  raise  the  condition  of 
the  serf  even  to  the  restoration  of  freedom :  but  it 
was  the  especial  honour  and  glory  of  Christianity, 
that  while  it  broke  the  spiritual  bonds  of  sin,  it  ever 
actively  laboured  to  relieve  the  heavy  burthen  of 
social  servitude.  We  are  distinctly  told  that  Bishop 
Wilfri'S,  on  receiving  the  grant  of  Selsey  from 
Caedwealha  of  Wessex,  immediately  manumitted 
two  hundred  and  fifty  unfortunates,  whom  he  found 
there  attached  to  the  soil, — that  those,  whom  by 
baptism  he  had  rescued  from  servitude  to  devils, 
might  by  the  grant  of  liberty  be  rescued  from  servi- 
tude to  man^.  In  this  spirit  of  charity,  the  clergy 
obtained  respite  from  labour  for  the  J^eow  on  the 

'  Tac.  Germ.  xxv.  '  Bed.  H.  E.  iv.  13 

p2 


212  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Sabbath,  on  certain  high  festivals  and  on  the  days 
which  preceded  or  followed  them^ ;  the  lord  who 
compelled  his  ]>e6w  to  laboui'  between  the  sunset 
on  Saturday  and  the  sunset  on  Sunday,  forfeited 
him  altogether  2 ;  probably  at  first  to  the  king  or 
the  gerefa ;  but  in  the  time  of  Cnut  the  serf  thus 
forfeited  was  to  become  folkfree^.  To  their  merci- 
ful intervention  it  must  also  be  ascribed  that  the 
will  of  a  Saxon  proprietor,  laic  as  well  as  clerical, 
so  constantly  directs  the  manumission  of  a  num- 
ber of  serfs,  for  the  soul's  health  of  the  testator*  ; 
Alfred  even  goes  •  so  far  as  to  give  free  power  to 
the  serf  of  bequeathing  to  whomsoever  he  pleases, 
whatever  may  have  been  given  him  for  God's  sake, 
or  he  may  have  earned  in  his  own  moments  of  lei- 
sure ^ ;  and  this  provision,  which  probably  implies  a 
prohibition  to  the  lord  of  removing  his  labourer 
arbitrarily  from  a  plot  of  ground  well  cultivated  by 
his  own  efforts,  tends  to  secure  to  the  unfortunate 
serf  some  interest  in  the  produce  of  his  industry  : 
the  Hungarian  will  recognize  in  it  the  spirit  of 
Maria  Theresia's  TIrbarium.  It  is  moreover  obvious 
from  many  surviving  documents,  that,  in  the  later 
periods,  the  serf  could  purchase  his  own  release^, 

'  Leg.  Wihtr.  §  9,  10.    Ini,  §  3.    Edw.  Gu«.  §  7.    ^«elr.  viii.  §  2. 

^  Leg.  Ini,  §  3.  =  Onut,  Leg.  Sec.  §  45. 

*  Ood.  Dipl.  Nos.  716,  721,  722,  782,  788,  919,  925,  931,  946,  947, 
957,  959,  981. 

^  Leg.  M\t  §  43.  ^«elred  (viii.  §  2)  permits  the  serf  to  labour  on 
his  own  account,  three  days  before  Michaelmas.  Theodore  (Poen.  xix. 
§  30)  and  Ecgberht  (Poen.  Addit.  §  35)  forbid  the  lord  to  rob  his  serf 
of  what  he  may  have  acquired  by  his  own  industry.  It  was  nevertheless 
held  by  some  that  the  serf  could  not  purchase  his  own  freedom. 

^  This  is  true  only  of  the  Saxon,  not  of  the  Norman  period.     Glan- 


CH.  vni.]  THE  UNTREE.    THE  SERF.  2ia 

at  least  with  the  lord's  consent  i,  or  be  bought  by 
another  for  the  purpose  of  manumission 2,  or  even 
be  borrowed  on  pledge  for  a  term  of  years^,  during 
which  his  labour  might  be  actively  employed  in 
laying  up  the  means  of  future  freedom.  It  cannot 
indeed  be  denied  that  the  slave  might  be  sold  like 
any  other  chattel,  and  that  even  as  late  as  iE^el- 
red  and  Cnut,  the  law  ventured  to  prohibit  no  more 
than  the  selling  him  into  heathendom,  or  without 
some  fault  on  his  part*:  nor  can  we  believe  that 
acts  of  the  grossest  oppression  and  tyranny  were 
unfrequent.  But  from  what  has  been  already  cited, 
it  must  be  evident  that  there  was  a  constantly 
growing  tendency  in  favour  of  freedom,  that  the 
clergy  suggested  every  motive,  and  the  law  made 
every  possible  effort,  at  least  to  diminish  the  more 
grievous  circumstances  of  servitude.  It  is  more- 
over to  be  borne  in  mind  that  a  very  large  propor- 
tion of  the  jjeowas  at  any  given  time,  were  in  reality 
criminal  serfs,  convicts  expiating  their  offences  by 
their  sufferings.  Taking  all  the  circumstances  into 
consideration,  I  am  disposed  to  think  that  the  mere 
material  condition  of  the  unfree  population  was  not 
necessarily  or  generally  one  of  great  hardship.     It 

ville  expressly  denies  tliat  the  serf  could  redeem  himself.  "  Illud  ta- 
men  notandum  est,  quod  non  potest  aliqiiis,  in  villenagio  positus,  liber- 
tatem  suam  propriis  denariis  suis  quaerere.  Posset  enim  tunc  a  domino 
suo  secundum  ius  et  consuetudinem  regni  ad  TiUenagium  revocari ;  quia 
omnia  catalla  cuiuslibet  nativi  intelliguntur  esse  in  potestate  doinini  sui, 
[per]  quod  propriis  denariis  suis  versus  dominium  suum  a  villenagio 
se  redimere  non  poterit."     Glanv.  lib.  v.  cap.  5. 

1  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  933,  934,  93-5,  936,  981  (the  3l8t  paragraph). 

"  Ibid.  No.  981  (the  28th  paragraph).  -  Ibid.  No.  975. 

*  Leg.  iE«elr.  v.  §  2 ;  vi.  §  9.     Cnut,  Leg.  Sec.  §  3. 


214  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

seems  doubtful  whether  the  labour  of  the  serf  was 
practically  more  severe,  or  the  remuneration  much 
less  than  that  of  an  agricultural  labourer  in  this 
country  at  this  day :  his  lord  was  bound  to  feed  him 
for  his  own  sake,  and  if,  when  old  and  worn  out,  he 
wished  to  rid  himself  of  a  useless  burthen,  he  could 
by  an  act  of  emancipation  hand  over  his  broken- 
down  labourer  to  the  care  of  a  Church  which,  with 
all  its  faults,  never  totally  lost  sight  of  the  divine 
precepts  of  charity  ^.  We  are  not  altogether  with- 
out the  means  of  judging  as  to  the  condition  of  the 
serf,  and  the  provision  made  for  him ;  although  the 
instances  which  we  may  cite  are  not  all  either  of  one 
period,  or  one  country,  or  indeed  derived  from 
compilations  having  the  authority  of  law,  they  show 
sufficiently  what  opinion  was  entertained  on  this 
subject  by  some  among  the  ruling  class.  In  the 
prose  version  of  Salomon  and  Saturn^,  it  is  said 
that  every  serf  ought  to  receive  yearly  seven  hun 
dred  and  thirty  loaves,  that  is,  two  loaves  a  day, 
beside  morning  meals  and  noon  meals ;  this  can- 
not be  said  to  be  a  very  niggardly  portion.  Again, 
the  valuable  document  entituled,  "  Eectitudines 
singularum  personarum^"  gives  details  respecting 

'  Tte  Romans  used  to  slay  their  infirm  and  useless  serfs,  or  expose 
them  in  an  island  of  the  Tiber.  Claudius  made  several  regxilationa 
in  their  favour.  "Cum  quidam  aegra  et  afieota  mancipia  in  insvdam 
Aesculapii  taedio  medendi  exponerent,  omnes,  qui  exponerentur,  liheros 
esse  sanxit,  neo  redire  in  ditionem  domini,  si  convaluissent ;  quod  si 
quis  necare  mallet  quem  quam  exponere,  caedis  crimine  teneri."  Suet, 
in  Claud.  25. 

'  See  supra,  p.  38,  note  1. 

^  Thorpe,  A.  S.  Laws,  i.  432,  and  a  later  edition  by  Dr.  H.  Leo  of 
flalle,  1842. 


CH.  vul]  the  UNFREE.     the  SERF.  215 

the  allowances  made  to  the  serfs  in  various  prsedial 
or  domestic  capacities,  which  would  induce  a  belief 
not  only  that  they  were  tolerably  provided  for,  but 
even  enabled  by  the  exertion  of  skill  and  industry 
to  lay  up  funds  of  their  own  towards  the  purchase 
of  their  freedom,  the  redemption  of  their  children, 
or  the  alleviation  of  their  own  poverty.  From  the 
same  authority  and  others,  we  may  conclude  that 
on  an  estate  in  general,  serfs  discharged  the  func- 
tions of  ploughman,  shepherd,  goatherd,  swineherd, 
oxherd  and  cowherd,  barn-man,  sower,  hayward, 
woodward,  dairymaid,  and  beadle  or  messenger ; 
while  the  geneat,  cotsetla,  gebur,  beocere  and  ga- 
folswan  were  probably  poor  freemen  from  whom  a 
certain  portion  of  labour  could  be  demanded  in 
consideration  of  their  holdings  i,  or  a  certain  rent 
(gafol)  reserved  out  of  the  produce  of  the  hives, 
flocks  or  herds  committed  to  their  care  :  and  these 
formed  the  class  of  the  Loet  and  Esne,  poor  mer- 
cenaries, serving  for  hire  or  for  their  land,  but  not 
yet  reduced  so  low  in  the  scale  as  the  Jieow  or 
wealh.  It  is  not  only  probable  that  there  would  be 
distinctions  in  the  condition  of  various  serfs  upon 
the  same  estate,  but  even  demonstrable :  it  can 
hardly  be  doubted  that  men  placed  in  situations 
of  some  trust,  as  the  ploughman,  oxherd  or  beadle, 
were  in  a  somewhat  higher  class,  and  of  better  con- 
dition, than  the  mere  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers 


'  This  is  the  Rohot  of  Slavonic  countries,  the  Operatio  of  our  Nor- 
man law ;  a  mere  lahour-rent,  necessary  in  countries  where  there  is  no 
accumulated  capital,  and  wealth  (for  want  of  markets)  consists  only  in 
land,  and  limbs  wherewith  to  till  it. 


216  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLANB.  [book  i. 

of  water.  Now  in  a  charter  of  the  year  902,  we 
find  an  interesting  statement,  which  I  must  take 
leave  to  cite  ^ :  Denewulf  bishop  of  Winchester 
and  his  Chapter  had  leased  land  at  Eblesburne  to 
Beornwulf,  a  relative  of  the  bishop :  the  Chapter 
sent  word  to  Beornwulf  that  the  men,  that  is  the 
serfs,  were  to  remain  attached  to  the  land — '"Sset 
■Sa  men  moston  on  'Sam  lande  wunian  " — whether 
he,  or  any  other,  held  it:  '"Sonne  wseron  'Sser  J^reo 
witejjeowe  men  burbserde,  "J  jjreo  J^eowbaerde,  Sa 
me  salde  bisceop  "]  'Sa  hiwan  to  rihtre  gehte  "]  hira 
team :"  "  Now  there  were  three  convicts  burbeerde 
and  three  Jieowbgerde,  whom  the  bishop  and  the 
brethren  gave  me,  together  with  their  offspring." 
The  expressions  used  in  this  passage  seem  to  show 
that  some  of  the  witefieowe  men  upon  this  estate 
enjoyed  a  higher  condition  than  others^,  being  cul- 
tivators or  boors,  while  the  others  were  more  strictly 
slaves.  The  very  curious  and  instructive  dialogue 
of  ^Ifric  numbers  among  the  serfs  the  yrSling  or 
ploughman,  whose  occupation  the  author  neverthe- 
less places  at  the  head  of  all  the  crafts,  with  perhaps 
a  partial  exception  in  favour  of  the  smith's^. 

Servitude  ceased  by  voluntaiy  or  compulsory 
manumission  on  the  part  of  the  lord ;  the  latter 
case  being  that  where  the  services  of  the  slave  were 
forfeited  through  the   misconduct    of  the  master. 

'  Cod.  Dip.  No.  1079. 

^  The  compounds  of  b^de  cannot  denote  anything  but  a  permanent 
condition  or  quality :  they  are  nearly  equivalent  to  the  compounds  of 
cund,  excepting  that  they  are  necessarily  personal. 

'  Thorpe,  Analecta. 


CH.  vin.]  THE  UNFREE.    THE  SERF.  217 

And  as  loss  of  liberty  must  be  considered  in  the 
main  as  a  consequence  of  the  public  law,  under- 
stood in  the  general,  and  expressed  in  the  parti- 
cular case,  so  must  it  I  think  be  asserted,  that  at 
first  emancipation  depended  in  some  degree  upon 
the  popular  will  as  well  as  the  mercy  or  caprice  of 
private  individuals.  It  is  no  doubt  true,  that  at 
a  period  when  what  we  now  call  crimes  were  ra- 
ther considered  in  the  light  of  civil  injuries,  for 
which  satisfaction  was  due  to  the  parties  injured,  it 
might  seem  reasonable  to  leave  the  latter  in  pos- 
session of  the  power  to  assess  the  minimum,  at 
least,  of  his  own  satisfaction :  to  allow  him  to  de- 
cide how  long  a  period  of  servitude  he  would  con- 
tent himself  with,  if  he  chose  to  renounce  the  right 
he  possessed  of  claiming  an  endless  one  ;  or  lastly, 
to  reward  good  and  faithful  service  by  cancelling 
the  consequences  of  an  earlier  wrong.  But  eman- 
cipation has  two  very  different  effects :  it  not  only 
relieves  the  serf  from  personal  burthens  and  dis- 
abilities, but  it  restores  or  introduces  a  citizen  to 
political  and  public  rights.  In  a  state  of  society 
where  landed  possession  and  the  exercise  of  such 
rights  are  inseparable,  a  grave  difficulty  arises,  viz. 
how  can  provision  be  made  for  the  newly  emanci- 
pated, and  now  free  man  ]  If  the  community  will 
consent,  and  possess  the  means,  to  create  a  new  free 
Hide  for  his  occupation,  of  course  the  matter  can 
be  managed ;  but  this  consent  renders  the  eman- 
cipation in  reality  the  act  of  the  state,  not  of  the 
manumittor.  Or  the  lord  on  restoring  freedom  to 
his  serf  may  endow  him  with  a  portion  of  his  own 


218  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

land,  sufficient  for  easy  or  even  wealthy  subsistence ; 
but  this  will  not  make  him  fully  a  free  man,  give 
him  his  full  position  in  the  noXirevfia  or  polity,  and 
place  him  on  a  level  with  the  free  inhabitants  of 
the  Mark. 

Till  periods  very  late  in  comparison  with  that 
which  is  assumed  in  the  course  of  this  argument,  a 
similar  principle  prevails  in  our  legislation  upon  this 
subject.  Glanville  says,  "It  is  also  to  be  observed 
that  a  man  may  enfranchise  his  serf  in  respect  of 
the  persons  of  himself  or  his  heirs,  but  not  in  re- 
spect of  others.  For  if  any  one,  having  once  been 
a  serf,  and  afterwards  having  attained  to  freedom  in 
this  manner,  should  be  produced  in  court  against  a 
third  party  to  support  a  cause,  or  for  the  purpose 
of  making  any  law  of  the  land,  he  may  justly 
be  removed  therefrom,  if  his  birth  in  vUlenage 
should  be  objected  to  and  proved  against  him  in 
the  court,  even  though  the  serf  so  enfranchised 
should  have  come  to  be  promoted  unto  a  knight's 
degree  i." 

Later  still,  liberty  seems  considered  as  a  privilege 
the  value  of  which  might  be  diminished  by  its  ex- 
tension ;  and  Fleta  gives  as  a  reason  why  the  lord 
is  bound  to  pursue  his  fugitive  serf,  "  lest  by  neg- 
ligence of  the  lords,  serfs  should  prevail  to  assert 
their  own  freedom  2." 

On  consideration  therefore  of  all  the  facts,  we 
must  conclude  that  where  full  and  complete  manu- 
mission was  intended,  the  transaction  could  only  be 

'  Lib.  V.  cap.  5.  '  Lib.  i.  cap.  7,  §  7,  8. 


CH.  vni.J  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  219 

completed  in  the  presence  and  with  the  co-opera- 
tion of  the  community,  whereby  all  claims  besides 
those  of  the  manumitting  lord  would  be  formally 
estopped  for  the  future.  And  this  would  be  nearly 
equivalent  to  the  admission  (rare  indeed)  of  a  metic 
or  other  stranger  to  the  full  rights  of  citizenship  at 
Athens,  which  could  hardly  have  effect  without  a 
^r](pi(j/jia  or  deliberate  vote  of  the  whole  peopled 
Accordingly  even  in  the  laws  of  William  the  Con- 
queror and  Henry  the  First  we  find  evidence  that 
the  completest  publicity  was  given  to  formal  manu- 
missions^; and  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  believe 
that  this  refers  back  to  a  time  when  such  publicity 
may  have  consisted  in  the  presentation  of  the  serf 
before  the  assembled  folcmot,  and  their,  expressed 
or  implied  assent  to  the  solemn  act. 

Practically  however,  it  is  probable  that  the  dis- 
solution of  servitude  did  not  absolutely  confer  all 
the  privileges  of  freedom.  The  numerous  acts  of 
manumission   directed  by  the  wills  of  great  land- 


'  The  slaves  who  fought  on  the  Athenian  side  at  Arginusae  were 
manumitted  and  enrolled  among  the  Plataeans,  being  thus  admitted  into 
the  TroXirevfia.  We  learn  this  from  a  fragment  of  Hellanicus,  preserved 
in  the  Scholiast  on  Arist.  Ran.  694 :  the  words  are,  roiis  o-vvvavfiaj^fi- 
a-avras  SovXovs  '"EXKaviKos  (prjcnv  i\tv6epa>6r]vai,  Ka\  iyypatpevras  i)S 
liXarate'ts  a-vpiroKiTeva-aoSm  avro'is.  See  also  Niehuhr  (Hare  and  Thirl- 
wall),  p.  264.  The  Langohards  upon  a  somewhat  similar  occasion 
manumitted  their  serfs.  "Igitur  Langohardi,  ut  beUatorum  possint 
ampliare  numerum,  plures  a  servili  iugo  ereptos,  ad  libertatis  statum 
perducunt.  Utque  rata  eorum  haberi  posset  libertas,  sanciunt,  more 
solito,  per  sagittam,  inmurmurantes  nihilominus,  ob  rei  firmitatem, 
quaedam  patria  verba."     Paul.  Diac.  de  Gest.  i.  13. 

'  "  Si  qui  vero  velit  servum  suum  liberum  facere,  tradat  eum  vice- 
comiti,"  etc.  Leg.  Wil.  iii.  §  15.  "Qui  servum  suum  liberat,  in  aeccleaia, 
vel  mercato,  vel  comitatu,  vel  hundreto,"  etc.  Leg.  Hen.  I.  1,  §  78. 


220  THE  SAXONS  LN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

owners  are  totally  inconsistent  with  the  notion  of 
any  interference  on  the  part  of  the  assembled  peo- 
ple, as  necessary  to  their  validity :  the  instances,  it 
is  true,  are  mostly  of  modern  date,  but  still  we 
hear  of  manumissions  by  wholesale  at  very  early 
periods,  Where  nothing  but  the  lord's  own  will  can 
possibly  be  thought  of  ^.  It  seems  therefore  pro- 
bable that  a  certain  amount  of  dependence  was  re- 
served ;  that  the  freedman  became  relieved  from 
the  harsher  provisions  of  his  former  condition,  but 
remained  in  general  under  the  protection  and  on 
the  land  of  his  former  lord,  perhaps  receiving  wages 
for  services  still  rendered.  In  the  eighth  century 
Wihtraed  of  Kent  enacted  that  even  in  the  case  of 
solemn  manumission  at  the  altar,  the  inheritance, 
the  wergyld  and  the  mund  of  the  family  should  re- 
main to  the  lord,  whether  the  new  freedman  conti- 
nued to  reside  within  the  Mark  or  not^.  The  mode 
of  provision  for  the  emancipated  serf  must,  in  a 
majority  of  cases,  have  led  to  this  result.  The  lord 
endowed  him  out  of  his  own  land,  either  with  a 
full  possession,  secured  by  charter,  or  a  mere  tem- 
porary, conditional  loan,  Icen :  the  man  therefore 
remained  upon  the  lord's  estate,  and  in  his  borh 
or  surety,  though  no  longer  liable  to  servile  disabi- 
lities^. 


'  For  example  Wilfri'S's,  at  Selsey ;  see  above,  p.  211. 

^  Leg.  Wihtr.  §  8. 

■*  Wulfwani  in  her  will  directs  her  legatees  to  feed  twenty  freolsmen 
or  freedmen.  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  694.  Ketel  commands  that  all  the  men 
whom  he  has  freed  shall  have  all  that  is  under  their  hand, — probably 
all  they  had  received  as  stock,  or  had  been  able  to  gain  by  their  in- 
dustry. Ood.  Dipl.  No.  1.340. 


CH.  vni.;i  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  221 

The  full  ceremonies  used  in  the  solemn  act  of 
emancipation  by  the  Anglosaxons  are  not  known  to 
us ;  but  there  is  reason  to  suppose  that  they  resem- 
bled those  of  other  Teutonic  nations.  Generally 
these  may  be  divided  into  civil  and  ecclesiastical ; 
the  former  receiving  their  sanction  from  the  autho- 
rity of  the  people  or  the  prince,  the  latter  from 
the  church  and  its  peculiar  influences.  "  He  who 
would  emancipate  his  serf  shall  deliver  him  to  the 
sheriff,  by  the  right  hand,  in  full  county,  shall  pro- 
claim him  free  from  all  yoke  of  servitude  by  ma- 
numission, shall  show  him  open  roads  and  doors, 
and  shall  deliver  unto  him  the  arms  of  a  free  man, 
namely  the  lance  and  sword  :  thenceforth  the  man 
is  freei."  Such  is  the  law  of  William  the  Con- 
queror, and  it  is  repeated  with  little  variation  by 
Henry  the  First^,  except  that  there  is  no  limitation 
to  the  sheriff  and  the  county.  But  this  was  also 
one  form  of  manumission  among  the  Langobards. 
The  person  who  was  to  be  made  Fulfreal  was  de- 
livered over  successively  into  the  hands  of  four 
different  persons :  the  last  of  these  brought  him 
before  witnesses  to  a  spot  where  four  roads  met, 
and  his  choice  was  given  him  of  these  roads.  He 
was  then  free,  and  dmund,  that  is  removed  from 
under  the  protection  of  his  former  master^.    But  it 

'  Leg.  Will.  Oonq.  hi,  §  15. 

^  "  Qui  servum  suum  liberat,  in  aecolesia,  vel  meroato,  vel  comitatu, 
vel  hundi'eto,  coram  testibus  et  palam  faciat,  et  liberas  ei  vias  et  portas 
conscribat  apertas,  et  lanceam  et  gladium,  vel  quae  liberoriim  arma 
sunt,  in  mauibus  ei  ponat."  Leg.  Hen.  I.  Ixxviii.  §  1.  Hence  the  manu- 
mitted serf  is  called  freo  'J  fserewyrS,  free  and  farewoHhy,  that  is, 
having  the  right  to  go  whither  he  chooses. 

'  Leg.  Rotharis,  Langob.  Reg.  cap.  225. 


223  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

appears  that  the  master,  even  though  he  gave  the 
free  roads,  might  reserve  the  mund  of  his  freedman, 
by  which  he  retained  the  right  of  inheriting  from 
him,  if  he  died  childless  ^ ;  and  this  recalls  to  us 
the  provision  already  cited  from  the  Kentish  law  2. 
The  history  of  Ramsey  informs  us  that  ^Selstan, 
the  son  of  Manni,  adopted  this  form  in  a  very  ex- 
tensive emancipation  of  his  serfs  ^,  and  we  may 
therefore  suppose  it  to  have  been  a  mode  usual 
among  the  Saxons.  Among  the  Franks,  the  fullest 
and  completest  act  of  emancipation  was  that  which 
took  place  before  the  king,  or  in  a  popular  court ; 
the  freedman,  from  the  ceremonies  adopted  on  the 
occasion,  was  called  Denarialis,  or  Denariatus,  "  qui 
denarium  ante  i-egem  iactavit."  He  became  capa- 
ble of  a  wergyld,  of  contracting  marriage  with  a 
free  woman,  and  in  general  obtained  all  the  rights 
of  a  free  citizen.  But  he  still  remained  iii  some 
degree  under  the  mund  of  the  king,  who  received 
his  wergyld,  and  had  certain  rights  over  his  inherit- 
ance*. I  do  not  know  whether  this  has  any  con- 
nexion with  a  law  of  Henry  the  First,  which  pro- 
vides that  in  any  case  of  manumission,  the  serf 
shall  give  thirty  pence  to  the  lord,  as  a  witness, 
namely  the  price  of  his  skin,  for  a  testimony  that 

'  Leg.  Eoth.  Langob.  Reg.  cap.  226.  "  Leg.  Wiht.  §  8. 

^  "Per  omnes  terras  suas,  de  triginta  hominibus  numeratis,  tredecim 
manumisit,  quemadmodum  sum  sors  docuit,  wt  in  quadrkio  piisiti 
pergerent  quocunque  voluissent."    Hist.  Bam.  29. 

*  See  Eichhom,  i.  333.  Sucb  a  person  resembles  the  Langobardic 
freedman  per  i7npans.  Ibid.  p.  331.  I  imagine  the  principle  upon 
which  the  wergyld  went  to  the  Wng,  to  be  this :  the  freedman  either 
neyer  had  a  free  m^g^,  or  they  had  forfeited  the  m^gsceaft  by  suffer- 
ing him  to  be  reduced  to  serfage.     Compare  Leg.  Eadw.  §  9. 


CH.  VIII.1  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  223 

he  is  thenceforth  himself  its  master^.    There  was  a 
form  of  manumission  among  the  Franks  by  charter^, 
which  however  did  not  confer  all  the  privileges  of 
the  denarialis.     The  holder  of  such  a  charter  was 
thence  called  Chartularius  :  I  will  not  assert  that 
such  a  system  prevailed  here,  although  it  is  possible 
that  some  of  the  many  charters  of  emancipation, 
printed  in  the  Codex  Diplomaticus,  may  be  of  this 
nature.    Their  general  character  however  is  that  of 
a  record  of  bargain  and  sale  between  different  par- 
ties :  it  may  be  indeed  presumed  that  emancipation 
would  follow,  but  there  is  no    positive  statement 
that  it  did.     The  following  class  of  cases  perhaps 
approaches  nearest  to  such  a  charta  ingenuitatis: 
"  By  this  book  of  the  Gospels  it  appeareth  that 
^Ifwig  the  Red  hath  bought  himself  out,  from  Ab- 
bat  ^Ifsige  and   all  the  convent,  with  one  pound. 
Whereof  is  witness  all  the  brotherhood  at  Bath. 
Christ  blind  him  who  turneth  away  this  record  ^ !  " 
But  this  is  only  a  memorandum  in  a  copy  of  the 
Gospels,  no  charter  of  manumission  ;  and  I  presume 
that  the   sheriff  would  have  required  some  much 
more  definite  and  legal  act,  before  he  looked  upon 
^Ifwig  the  Red  as  a  freeman.     Probably  he  was 
duly  made  free  at  the  altar  of  the  abbey  church  or 
at  the  door^.     Of  this  subsequent  process  we  have 
a  good  example  in  the  book  of  St.  Petroc. 

'  Leg.  Hen.  I.  Ixxviii.  §  3.  That  is,  that  he  is  no  longer  liable  to 
corporal  punishment  like  a  serf. 

^  "  Qui  vero  per  chartam  ingenuitatis  dimissi  sunt  liberi,"  etc.  Capit. 
Bajuvar.  an.  788.  cap.  7  (Georgisch.  p.  548).     Eichhorn,  i.  332. 

^  Cod.  Dipl.  1350. 

*  Every  lawyer  knows  the  value  of  the  ad  ostium  aecclesiae,  at  any 
tate  in  matters  if  dower.     It  implies  perfect  publicity. 


224  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

"  This  book  beareth  witness  that  ^Ifsige  bought 
a  woman  called  OngyneSel,  and  her  son  Gy^iccBel, 
of  Durcil  for  half  a  pound,  at  the  church-door  in 
Bodmin :  and  he  gave  to  ^Elfsige  the  portreeve  and 
Maccos  the  hundred-man,  fourpence  as  toll.  Then 
came  ^Ifsige  who  bought  these  persons,  and  took 
them,  and  freed  them,  ever  sacless,  on  Petroc's  altar, 
in  the  witness  of  these  good  men ;  that  is,  Isaac  the 
priest  1,"  etc. 

Of  all  forms  of  emancipation  I  imagine  this  to 
have  been  the  most  frequent,  partly  because  of  its 
convenience,  partly  because  the  motives  for  eman- 
cipation were  generally  of  a  religious  cast,  and  the 
sanctions  of  religion  were  solemn  and  awful.  Al- 
most all  the  records  which  we  possess  on  this  sub- 
ject are  taken  from  the  margins  of  Gospels  or  other 
books  belonging  to  religious  houses,  and  the  few 
references  in  the  laws  imply  emancipation  at  the 
altar.  Among  the  Franks  this  form,  in  which  the 
freedman  was  called  Tabularius,  conveyed  only 
imperfect  freedom  :  the  utmost  it  could  do  was  to 
confer  the  privileges  of  a  Roman  provincial,  to 
which  class  the  clergy  were  reckoned  :  but  the  tabu- 
larius  even  so  was  not  fully  free  ;  he  still  remained 
in  the  mund  of  the  church.  Wihtraed's  law,  so  often 
cited,  shows  clearly  that  this  was  not  the  case  in 
England ;  nor  could  it  be,  seeing  that  the  clergy 
among  us  were  national,  and  the  Frankish  system 
oi personal  rights  did  not  prevail.  I  am  therefore 
disposed  to  think  that  gradually  emancipation  at 
the  altar  was  taken  to  convey  all  the  privileges  of 

>  Ood.  Dipl.  981.  §  28. 


CH.  vin.]  THE  UNFEEE.     THE  SERF.  225 

manumission,  and  that  it  was  the  mode  generally, 
though  not  exclusively,  in  use.  On  this  point,  the 
want  of  documents  prevents  our  attaining  certainty. 
The  method  was  probably  this :  the  man  was  for- 
mally offered  up  before  the  high  altar,  and  there  de- 
clared free  in  the  presence  of  the  officiating  clergy 
and  the  congregation.  A  memorandum  was  then 
made  in  some  religious  book  belonging  to  the 
church,  and  the  names  of  the  witnesses  Avere  re- 
corded. Whether  a  separate  certificate  was  pre- 
pared does  not  appear. 

The  full  extent  of  the  rights  obtained  by  the 
freedman,  especially  in  respect  of  inheritance,  is 
not  to  be  gathered  from  any  existing  Anglosaxon 
document.  It  is  probable  that  these  were  limited, 
as  among  the  Langobards  and  Franks :  his  offspring 
however  were  free,  and  his  marriage  with  a  free 
woman,  equal :  his  other  rights,  duties  and  privi- 
leges, in  short  his  general  condition,  were  in  all 
probability  determined  by  certain  arrangements 
between  himself  and  his  lord  previous  to  the  act  of 
manumission.  In  such  a  case  neither  party  would 
find  much  difficulty  in  settling  the  terms  of  a  bar- 
gain. 


NOTE. 

Thb  following  pedigrees  illustrate  the  care  with  which  the  relations  of 
the  gebiir,  and  other  dependent  cultivators  on  an  estate  were  recorded. 
It  is  probable,  nay  even  certain,  that  such  records  were  preserved  in  all 
lordships  :  they  were  the  original  court-rolls,  bj'  copy  of  which  the  un- 
free  tenants,  perhaps  also  the  poor  freemen,  held,  who  were  thus  the 
ancient  copyholders.     The  amount  of  the  holdings  was  undoubtedly 

VOL.    I.  Q 


226  THE  SAXONS  IX  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

settled  by  the  custom  of  the  county  or  the  manor ;  and  it  is  probable 
that  one  measure  prevailed  for  all  tenants  of  similar  grades.  A  record 
of  descents  was  necessary  to  regulate  the  claims  of  a  lord  to  the  fami- 
lies of  his  coloni,  and  some  extensive  system  of  registration  very  pro- 
bably prevailed  :  it  would  be  impossible  without  it  to  secure  the  due 
operation  of  the  law  of  team. 

"  Dudda  was  a  gebiir  at  Hse^feld,  and  he  had  three  daughters,  one 
was  named  Bedrwyn,  the  second  UeovswyiS,  the  third  Golde.  And 
Wulflaf  at  HfetSfeld  hath  Deorwya  to  wife,  iElfstan  at  Tseccingawyr'iS 
hath  DeorswJ'S  to  wife,  and  Ealhstan,  ^Ifstan's  brother,  hath  Golde  to 
wife.  There  was  a  man  named  Hwita,  the  beemaster  at  HsetSfeld,  and 
he  had  a  daughter  Tate,  the  mother  of  Wulfsige,  the  bowman  ;  and 
Wulfsige's  sister  Lulle  hath  H^hstan  to  wife,  at  Wealden.  Wifiia  and 
Dunne,  and  Seoloce  are  inborn  to  HsetJfeld.  Duding,  the  son  of  Wifiis, 
is  settled  at  Wealden ;  and  Cedlmund  the  son  of  Dunne,  also  sits  at 
Wealden,  and  iE'Selheah  the  son  of  Seoloce,  also  sits  at  Wealden :  and 
Tate,  Cenwold's  sister,  Mseg  has  to  wife  at  Welgun ;  and  Eadhelm,  the 
son  of  HereSry  ^,  hath  Tate's  daughter  to  wife.  Wserlaf,  Wairstan's 
father,  was  a  right  serf  at  Hse'Sfeld,  he  held  the  grey  swine '." 

"  •{.  A  man  named  Brada  was  a  gebiir  at  HseSfeld,  and  Hwite  was 
the  name  of  Brada's  wife ;  she  was  a  gebiir's  daughter  at  Ha'Sfeld. 
Hwite  was  Weerstan's  WterSry'S's  and  Wynburh's  third  mother^.  And 
Wserstan  sits  at  Wadtiin,  and  hath  Wine's  sister  to  wife,  and  Wine  hath 
Wser^ry'S  to  wife.  And  Dunne  sat  at  Wadtiin,  she  was  inborn  to  HseS- 
feld :  and  Deorwyn  her  daughter  hath  Gynewald  to  wife  at  Munden :  and 
Dedrna^  her  brother  is  with  Gynewald.  And  Dudde,  Wifiis's  daughter 
sits  at  Wilmundeslea.  Cynhelm,  C^nwald's  father,  was  a  gebiir  at  HsetS- 
feld,  and  Manna,  Cdnwald's  son,  sits  at  Wadtiin  under  Eadwald." 

"  «!•  Buhe,  Dryhtlaf  s  mother-in-law,  was  removed  rom  HseSfeld 
into  Eslingaden :  and  ^'Selwyli,  Eadugu  and  ^'Selgy'5  were  three 
sisters ;  and  Tilwine  and  Dudda,  these  were  all  Buge's  children ;  and 
Ealhstan  Tilwine's  son,  and  Wulfsige  Eadugu's  son,  and  Cedlhelm 
-lESelgyS's  son,  and  Gedlstau  and  Manwine.  This  kin  came  from 
[Hue'Sjfeld ;  Dedrwulf,  Gyneburh's  son,  and  his  two  sisters ;  and  Cy- 
neric  at  Clsefring  is  their  uncle.  These  men  are  the  magas  of  Tata, 
the  gebiir  at  HiB«feld."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1353. 

It  is  probable  that  all  these  places  are  in  Hertfordshire,  or  in  Essex, 
In  both  counties  we  find  Hatfield  and  Walden :  there  is  no  Clavering 
in  Hertfordshire,  that  1  know  of.  On  the  other  hand  I  am  not  aware 
of  anv  Munden  or  Watton  in  Essex. 


'  He  was  the  rehteswan  a\ porcarivs  duminicalis.     I  cannot  explain 
the  distinction  inten  ded  by  Sa  grsegan  swin,  literally  the  grey  swine. 
'  Perhaps  great-grandmother. 


CH.  VIII.]  THE  UNFREE.     THE  SERF.  227 

In  880  ^Selred,  duke  of  Mercia,  gave  various  estates  to  the  bishopric 
of  Worcester.  He  also  gave  six  persons  with  their  ofl'spring,  who  had 
previously  been  adscripti  glehce  at  the  royal  vill  of  Bensington.  "These 
are  the  names  of  the  persons  who  are  written  from  Bensington  to 
Readanora,  to  the  bishopric  of  Worcester,  with  their  oiispriDg,  and  the 
progeny  that  may  come  of  them  to  all  eternity :  Alhmund,  Tidwulf, 
Tidleah,  LuU  and  Eadwulf  i." 

In  902,  Beomwulf  homed  (gehamette),  that  is  attached,  to  his  manor 
of  Eblesbume,  a  number  of  persons,  of  both  sexes.  Lufe  and  her 
three  children,  Luha  and  his  six  children  are  named ". 

In  the  time  of  Eadgar  we  have  the  record  of  several  persons  esta- 
blishing by  their  oaths  that  their  parents  had  not  been  serfs  or  coloni  of 
the  king  ^.  An  Appendix  to  this  chapter  contains  numerous  examples 
of  manumissions,  of  various  periods. 


Cod.  Dipl.  No.  311.  ^  Ibid.  No.  1079.  -  Ibid.  No.  981. 


q2 


228 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  MUTUAL  GUARANTEE.     MiEGBURH.    TITHING. 
HUNDRED. 

The  organization  in  Marks  and  in  the  Ga  or  Scir 
was  a  territorial  one,  based  upon  the  natural  con- 
formation of  the  country,  common  possession  of  the 
soil  and  usufruct  of  its  produce.  It  has  been  already 
said  that  both  of  these  divisions  had  their  separate 
courts  of  justice  or  parliaments,  their  judges  and 
executive  officers.  But  some  further  machinery 
was  required  to  secure  the  public  peace,  to  provide 
for  the  exercise  of  what,  in  modern  society,  we  call 
the  police,  and  to  ensure  the  rights  of  the  indivi- 
dual markman,  in  respect  to  other  markmen,  as  well 
as  his  conformity  to  the  general  law.  A  corporate 
existence  was  necessary,  which  should  embrace  a 
more  detailed  system  of  relations  than  was  to  be 
found  either  in  the  Mark  or  in  the  Shu'emoot. 
Strictly  speaking,  the  former  of  these  was  princi- 
pally busied  with  the  questions  which  arose  out 
of  its  own  peculiar  nature,  that  is,  with  offences 
against  the  integrity  of  the  frontier,  the  forest,  the 
rights  of  common  in  the  pastures  and  meadows, 
and  other  delinquencies  of  a  public  character.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  Shiremoot,  though  it  must  have 
taken  cognizance  of  disputed  questions  between 
several  Marks,  and  may,  even  from  the  first,  have 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  2ii9 

exercised  some  description  of  appellate  jurisdiction, 
must  naturally  have  considered  the  higher  and  more 
general  attributes  of  legislation  and  foreign  policy, 
the  national  rather  than  municipal  administration, 
as  belonging  to  its  peculiar  and  appropriate  pro- 
vince. Perhaps  also  the  exigencies  of  military  dis- 
cipline may  gradually  have  rendered  a  more  com- 
plicated method  of  enrolment  necessary,  by  means 
of  which  companies  and  regiments  might  be  kept 
upon  a  permanent  footing,  and  called  into  imme- 
diate action  when  occasion  demanded  their  ser- 
vices ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  due  provision  was 
made  for  the  tilling  the  lands  of  those  whose  per- 
sonal exertions  were  required  in  defence  of  the 
public  weal  i. 

There  were  two  forms  in  which  these  various 
objects  might  be  attained ;  these  were,  subordinate 
organizations  of  men,  not  excessive  in  number,  or 
too  widely  dispersed,  and  founded  either  upon  the 
bond  of  blood  or  the  ties  of  family,  including  that 
of  adoption,  or  merely  upon  an  arbitrary  numerical 
definition.  Each  of  these  plans  had  advantages  as 
well  as  defects  :  the  family  bond  alone  did  not  se- 
cure a  sufficient  territorial  unity,  although  in  prac- 
tice it  had  at  first  considerable  influence  upon  the 
location  of  individual  households  ;  moreover  it  gave 
rise  to  an  inequality  continually  on  the  increase, 
and  necessarily  threatening  to  the  independence  of 
the  free  men.  On  the  other  hand,  any  merely  arbi- 
trary, numerical  classification  would  have  excluded 

'  For  the  Frankish  custom  see  the  Capitulary  of  the  year  807. 
Pertz,  iii.  149.  and  Donniges,  Deut.  Staatsr.  pp.  92,  93. 


230  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

a  most  important  social  element,  the  responsibility 
of  man  to  man  in  the  bond  of  kindred,  the  feelings 
and  engagements  of  family  affection,  family  honour 
and  family  ambition.  The  problem  was  finally 
solved  by  a  partial  union  of  the  two  methods :  in 
all  probability,  the  law  of  compromise  which  reigns 
throughout  all  history,  gradually  brought  about  a 
fusion  of  two  separate  principles,  widely  differing 
in  point  of  antiquity,  and  thus  superinduced  the 
artificial  upon  the  natural  bond,  without  entirely 
destroying  the  infiuefnce  of  the  latter. 

For  I  think  it  unquestionable  that  the  artificial 
bond  was  really  later  in  point  of  time :  sirice,  in 
the  first  place,  indefinite  and.  vague  arrangements 
usually  precede  the  definite  and  settled ;  and  next, 
because  Tacitus  takes  no  notice  whatever  of  any 
but  the  family  bond,  which  he  represents  as  strin- 
gent in  the  highest  degree.  We  have  already  seen 
that  Caesar  declares  the  divisions  of  the  land  to 
have  taken  place  according  to  families  or  rela- 
tionships, cognationes  ^,  from  which  we  may  infer 
at  first  a  considerable  amount  of  territorial  unity. 
From  his  far  more  observant  successor  we  learn 
that  the  military  oi'ganization  was  based  upon  the 
same  principle ;  that  the  composition  of  the  troop 
or  regiment  depended  upon  no  accidental  arrange- 
ment, but  was  founded  upon  families  or  relation- 
ships ^  ;  and  that  every  man  was  bound  to  take  up 


'  See  above,  p.  39,  note  1. 

2  "  Quodque  praecipuum  fortitudinis  incitamentum  est,  non  casus 
nee  fortuita  conglobatio  turmam  aut  cuneum  facit,  sed  familiae  et  pro- 
pinqiiitates."     Germ,  vii. 


CH.  K.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  231 

the  enmities  as  well  as  the  friendships  of  his  father 
or  kinsman  ^.  But  leaving  these  earlier  evidences, 
it  still  seems  that  the  Msegburh  or  Family-bond  is 
an  institution  whose  fiill  comprehension  is  neces- 
sary to  a  clear  conception  of  the  Anglosaxon  public 
and  private  life. 

The  idea  of  the  family  is  at  once  the  earliest  and 
strongest  of  human  ties ;  in  its  development  it  is 
also  the  most  ennobling  to  the  individual  and  salu- 
tary to  the  state ;  on  it  depend  the  honour  and 
dignity  of  woman,  the  unselfish  education  of  man, 
the  training  of  children  to  obedience  and  love,  of 
parents  to  protection  and  justice,  of  all  to  love  of 
country  and  enlightened  subordination  to  the  state. 
Where  it  does  not  exist,  man  becomes  an  instru- 
ment in  the  hands  of  others,  or  the  blind  tool  of 
systems.  In  its  highest  form  it  is  the  representa- 
tive of  that  great  mystery  by  which  all  Christians 
are  one  brotherhood,  united  under  one  Father  and 
King.  Throughout  the  latter  day  of  ethnic  civili- 
zation, when  the  idea  of  state  had  almost  ceased 
to  have  power,  and  the  idea  oi family  did  not  exist, 
there  was  a  complete  destruction  both  of  public 
and  private  morality ;  and  the  world,  grown  to  be 
a  sink  of  filth  and  vice,  was  tottering  to  the  fall 
which  Providence  in  mercy  had  decreed  for  its 
purification.  The  irruption  of  the  German  tribes 
breathed,  into  the  dead  bones  of  heathen  cultivation 
the  breath  of  a  new  life  ;  and  the  individual  dignity 
of  man  as  a  member  of  a  family, — the  deep-seated 

'  "  Susoipere  tarn  inimicitias  sen  patris  seu  propinqui  qiiam  amici- 
tias  necease  est."  Germ.  xxi. 


232  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

feeling  of  all  those  nations, — while  it  prepared 
them  to  become  the  founders  of  Christian  states 
which  should  endure,  made  them  the  wonder  of 
the  philosophers  and  theologians  of  Rome,  Greece 
and  Africa,  and  an  example  to  be  held  up  to  the 
degenerate,  races  whom  they  had  subdued  ^.  The 
German  house  was  a  holy  thing ;  the  bond  of  mar- 
riage a  sacred  and  symbolic  engagement  2;  holy 
above  man  was  woman  herself.  Even  in  the  depths 
of  their  forests  the  stern  warriors  had  assigned  to 
her  a  station  which  nothing  but  that  deep  feeling 
could  have  rendered  possible :  this  was  the  sacred 
sex,  believed  to  be  in  nearer  communion  with  divi- 
nity than  men^.  In  the  superstitious  tradition  of 
their  mythology,  it  was  the  young  and  beautiful 
Shieldmays,  the  maiden  Wselcyrian,  who  selected 
the  champions  that  had  deserved  to  become  the 
guests  of  Woden.  The  matrons  presided  over  the 
rites  of  religion,  conducted  divinations^,  and  en- 
couraged the  warriors  on  the  field  of  battle  ^ ;  Ve- 


'  What  had  struck  Tacitus  with  astonishment  and  admiration  in  the 
first  century  (Germ,  xviii.  xix.),  seemed  equally  remarkable  to  the 
thinkers  of  the  Roman  world  in  the  fourth  and  fifth.  Innumerable 
passages  confirmatory  of  the  averments  in  the  text  might  be  cited  from 
Augustine,  Orosius,  Salvianus,  or  even  Procopius, — testimonies  all  the 
more  valuable  because  supplied  by  hostile  witnesses,  by  the  conquered 
of  the  conqueror,  the  orthodox  of  the  Arian. 

^  Tac.  Germ.  xix.  '  Ibid.  viii. 

*  Caes.  Bell.  Gall.  i.  50. 

"  Tac.  Germ.  vii.  viii.  After  the  defeat  of  the  Cimbri  by  Marius, 
their  women  applied  to  the  Consul,  to  have  their  chastity  respected, 
and  themselves  assigned  as  serfs  to  the  vestal  virgins.  On  receiving  a 
refusal  they  put  their  children  and  then  themselves  to  death.  The  dogs 
that  had  accompanied  them,  long  defended  their  corpses.  See  Elorus, 
iii.  3,  and  Orosius,  v.  16. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  233 

ledas  and  Aurinias,  prophetesses  in  the  bloom  of 
youth  and  beauty,  led  the  raw  levies  of  the  North 
to  triumph  over  the  veteran  legions  of  Rome. 
Neither  rank  nor  wealth  could  atone  for  violated 
chastity  ^ ;  nor  were  in  general  any  injuries  more 
severely  punished  than  those  which  the  main 
strength  of  man  enabled  him  to  inflict  on  woman 2. 
That  woman,  nevertheless,  m  the  family,  held  a 
subordinate  situation  to  men,  lies  in  the  nature  of 
the  family  itself,  and  in  the  disposition  and  quali- 
ties which  have  been  implanted  in  woman,  to  en- 
able her  to  fulfil  her  appointed  duties  in  the  scheme 
of  Providence  ;  qualities  not  difl'erent  in  degree,  but 
kind,  from  those  of  her  helpmate,  that  they  may  be 
the  complement  of  his,  and,  united  with  his,  make 
up  the  full  and  perfect  circle  of  humanity.  As 
an  individual,  woman  was  considered  a  being  of  a 
higher  nature;  as  a  member  of  the  state,  she  was 
necessarily  represented  by  him  upon  whom  nature 
had  imposed  the  joyful  burthen  of  her  support,  and 
the  happy  duty  of  her  protection, — a  principle  too 
little  considered  by  those  who,  with  a  scarcely  par- 
donable sciolism,  have  clamoured  for  what  they  call 
the  rights  of  woman.  Woman  among  the  Teutons 
was  near  akin  to  divinity,  but  not  one  among  them 
ever  raved  that  the  femme  lihre  could  be  woman. 
Hence  the  profound  importance  attached  to  cha- 


'  Tac.  Germ.  xix. 

2  For  this  a  general  reference  to  the  Barbarian  lawa  must  suffice. 
Alaric  even  went  the  length  of  putting  to  death  a  noble  Goth, 
who,  during  the  sack  of  the  city,  had  violated  the  daughter  of  a  Roman 
citizen. 


234  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

stity,  and  the  undoubted  influence  of  alliances  by 
marriage  ^,  through  which  separate  kindreds  are 
fused  into  one  body,  adopting  common  interests, 
pursuing  common  objects,  and  recognizing  in  the 
bond  which  unites  its  members,  obligations  which 
are  still  exhibited  in  oriental  countries,  which  we 
trace  throughout  the  middle  ages  of  Europe,  but 
which  are  gradually  vanishing  under  the  conditions 
of  our  modern  mercantile  society. 

It  lies  in  the  very  nature  of  things  that  among  a 
people  animated  with  such  principles  as  have  now 
been  described,  and  so  placed  by  circumstances  on 
tracts  of  land  far  more  than  sufficient  for  their  sup- 
port, the  very  earliest  organization  should  be  based 
upon  the  family  relations.  Dwelling  near  to  one  an- 
other, united  by  a  community  of  interests  and  the 
endearing  ties  of  mutual  relationship,  or  the  scarcely 
weaker  bond  of  adoption, — strong  as  regards  other 
families  in  direct  proportion  to  their  union  among 
themselves, — the  maeg'S  or  family  ofi"er  all  the  gua- 
rantees in  their  own  natural  position  which  the  pri- 
mitive state  can  require.  In  the  popular  councils 
the  largest  and  most  distinguished  family  has  ne- 
cessarily the  greatest  weight ;  but  association  of 
others,  severally  less  powerful,  is  always  capable  of 
counteracting  danger  which  might  arise  in  a  free 
state  from  the  ambition  of  any  of  its  portions.  In 
the  absence  of  a  central  power, — or  rather  its  di- 
spersion through  all  the  several  members  of  the  com- 

'  A  beautiful  evidence  of  this  lies  in  the  epic  name  for  woman ;  in 
Anglosaxon  poetry  she  is  called  freoSowebbe,  the  weaver  of  peace. 
Beow.  1.3880.     Trav.  S.  1.  11. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  235 

munity,  the  collection  of  revenue  and  the  main- 
tenance of  the  peace  must  be  left  to  the  heads  of 
the  several  fractions,  whether  villages  (as  in  the 
East),  or  families,  which  at  one  time  are  identical 
with  villages.  The  police  therefore  especially  be- 
longs to  the  family,  and  is  by  it  exercised  over  all 
the  individuals  that  compose  it ;  hence  also  the 
grave  misconduct  of  the  individual  may  justly  have 
the  effect  of  destroying  the  social  position  of  the 
whole  mseg'S.  In  Beowulf,  the  warriors  who  de- 
serted their  prince  in  his  utmost  need,  are  sternly 
told  by  his  successor,  that  not  only  they,  but  their 
whole  mcegburh  will  thenceforth  have  forfeited  the 
rights  of  citizenship, 

folcrihtes  sceal 
•ScSre  mKrge 
Tponna  segliwylp 
idel  hweorfan, 

not,  each  of  you  individually,  but  each  and  every  man 
of  your  kin,  cognation  or  msegsceaft,  shall  be  de- 
prived of  his  rights  of  citizenship  :  from  which  we 
must  infer  that  the  misconduct  of  one  person  might 
compromise  his  relatives,  who  are  held  responsible 
for  his  actions  ^.  And  this  rule,  coupled  with  the 
fact  of  all  serving  together,  under  one  selected  from 
among  themselves,  and  each  under  the  eye  of  his 
nearest  and  dearest  friends,  supplied  a  military  or- 
ganization capable  of  enabling  the  harlarians  to 
cope  with  far  more  disciplined  and  scientific  mili- 
tary systems   than  their  own ;    serving  to  explain 

'  '-iOe  the  remarkable  passage  cited  at  p.  188,  note  1. 


236  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  almost  irresistible  power  with  which,  like  the 
Turks  of  more  recent  times,  the  Teutons  of  old  hurst 
upon  the  nations  exposed  to  their  onset  ^.  The  wer- 
gyld,  or  price  of  blood,  the  earliest  institution  of 
this  race,  only  becomes  perfectly  intelligible  when 
considered  from  this  point  of  view  :  the  gens  or  fa- 
mily at  large  are  injured  by  the  loss  of  their  asso- 
ciate, and  to  them  compensation  must  be  made; 
so  they,  in  turn,  must  make  compensation  for  him, 
since  rights  and  duties  are  commensurate.  This 
principle,  however  darkly,  is  still  involved  in  the 
theory  of  our  civil  actions  for  seduction. 

'  Weight  and  momentum  combined  are  the  secret  of  modern  tactics, 
and  morally  speaking  (i.  e.  the  appearance  in  superior  force  on  certain 
points),  of  modern  strategics  also.  Cavalry  charging  in  successive  eche- 
lons would  always  break  infantry  but  for  the  check  which  man  and 
horse  experience  in  their  speed  from  the  file-firing  of  the  squares  :  the 
mere  weight  of  the  ho^se  falling  dead  into  the  first  rank  would  break 
it  if  he  reached  it.  If  the  weight  of  the  advancing  body  be  greater  than 
that  of  the  resisting,  the  latter  is  destroyed.  A  successful  charge  of 
cavalry  won  the  battle  of  Marengo,  an  unsuccessful  one  lost  that  of 
Waterloo.  Modern  warfare  was  more  changed  by  the  substitution  of 
iron  for  wooden  ramrods,  by  which  the  momentum  of  musket-balls  was 
increased,  than  by  almost  any  other  mere  change  of  detail.  Steam- 
carriages  and  scythe-chariots,  the  Macedonian  phalanx — nay,  even 
squadrons  of  horse,  are  only  larger  bullets,  which  may  be  launched 
with  more  or  less  success  :  all  these  are  mechanical  discoveries  conse- 
quent upon  the  fact  that  the  individuals  of  which  armies  are  composed 
are  lower  in  the  scale  of  moral  dignity  than  of  old.  Once  group  men 
in  masses,  and  they  become  subject,  more  or  less,  according  as  disci- 
pline has  destroyed  their  individuality,  to  the  mechanical  laws  which 
govern  the  relations  of  all  masses.  No  doubt  a  stone  wall  will  turn 
any  charge  of  cavalry ;  and  so  will  a  regiment  of  infantry,  in  exact  pro- 
portion as  you  teach  it  to  stand  like  a  stone  wall,  that  is,  as  you  destroy 
the  individual  action  of  each  soldier.  The  Romans  stood  above  two 
feet  apart ;  our  men  touch  each  other  at  the  elbows.  Our  armies 
are  fitter  perhaps  for  aggressive  movements.  The  Germans  probably 
charged  tumultuously ;  but  the  scyldburh,  or  wall  of  shields,  was  hardly 
less  capable  of  receiving  a  charge  than  our  own  squares. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  237 

It  lies  in  the  very  nature  of  things  that  this,  al- 
beit a  natural,  cannot  be  an  enduring  system.  Its 
principal  condition  is  neighbourhood,  the  concen- 
tration of  the  family  upon  one  spot :  as  population 
increases,  and  with  it  emigration,  the  family  bond 
gradually  becomes  weaker,  and  at  last  perishes  as 
a  positive  and  substantive  institution,  surviving 
only  fragmentarily  in  the  traces  which  it  leaves 
upon  the  latter  order  that  replaces  it.  War,  com- 
merce, cultivation, — the  effect  and  cause  of  in- 
creasing population, — gradually  disperse  the  mem- 
bers of  the  sihsceaft  or  cognation,  and  a  time  arrives 
when  neighbours  are  no  longer  kinsmen.  At  this 
point  the  old  organization  ceases  to  be  effective, 
and  a  new  one  becomes  necessary,  unless  the  an- 
cient principle  is  to  be  entirely  abandoned.  But 
principles  are  not  easily  abandoned  in  early  stages 
of  society ;  a  young  nation  finds  it  easier  to  adopt 
artificial  arrangements  founded  upon  the  ancient 
form :  nor  is  it  necessary  that  the  later  should  have 
totally  superseded  its  predecessor ;  it  is  enough 
that  when  the  earlier  ceases  to  fulfil  its  object,  the 
latter  should  be  directed  to  supply  its  obvious  de- 
ficiency, and  be  united  with  it,  as  circumstances 
best  permit. 

Throughout  the  earliest  legislation  of  the  Teu- 
tonic nations,  and  especially  in  our  own,  we  find 
arrangements,  based  upon  two  distinct  principles, 
in  active  operation.  The  responsibility  of  the  fa- 
mily lies  ever  in  the  background,  the  ultimate 
resort  of  the  state  against  the  individual,  of  the  in- 
dividual against  the  state.     But  we  also  find  small 


238  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

bodies  of  men  existing  as  corporations,  founded 
upon  number  and  neighbourhood,  and  thus  making 
up  the  public  units  in  the  state  itself.  From  the 
first,  we  find  the  inhabitants  of  the  Mark  classed 
in  tens  and  hundreds  (technically  in  England,  Ti- 
things  and  Hundreds)  each  probably  comprising 
respectively  a  corresponding  number  of  members, 
together  with  the  necessary  officers,  viz.  a  tithing- 
man  for  each  tithing>  and  a  hundred-man  for  the 
hundred,  thus  making  one  hundred  and  eleven  men, 
or  Heads  of  houses  in  the  territorial  hundred i.  The 
Frankish  law  names  the  officers  thus  alluded  to : 
in  it  the  tithiiig-man  is  Decanus,  the  hundred-man 
Centenarius  ^.  The  Anglosaxon  law  does  not  indeed 
mention  its  divisions  by  these  names  till  a  compara- 
tively late  period,  when  their  significations  had  be- 
come in  some  respects  altered ;  but  it  seems  probable 
that  it  does  imply  them  under  the  term  Gegyldan, 
fellows,  brothers  of  the  gyld.  In  a  case  of  aggravated 
crime  it  is  provided  that  the  offender's  relatives  shall 
pay  a  third  part  of  the  fine,  his  gegyldan  a  third 
part,  and  if  he  cannot  pay  the  remainder  himself,  he 
is  to  become  an  outlaw,  i.  e.  forfeit  his  land  and  flee, 
perhaps  formally  abjure  the  country  2.     Now  it  is 


'  There  is  some  difficulty  in  deciding  whether  the  head  of  the  tithing 
was  included  in  the  ten,  or  beside  it.  I  have  proceeded  upon  the  sup- 
position that  he  was  not  included,  consequently  that  there  were  really 
eleven  men  in  the  tithing.  The  leading  authority  (Jud.  Civ.  Lond. 
M'Salst.  V.  §  3.  Thorpe,  i.  230)  is  totally  and  irreconcilably  contra- 
dictory on  the  point. 

^  The  Decani  appear  to  be  the  same  as  the  Decimales  homines  of 
^«elred's  law.    Thorpe,  i.  338. 

3  Leg.  JElf.  §  27. 


OH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  239 

perfectly  clear  that  a  law  expressed  in  such  general 
terms  as  these,  cannot  be  directed  to  a  particular 
and  exceptional  condition ;  that  it  does  not  apply 
to  the  accidental  existence  of  gegyldan,  but  on  the 
contrary  assumes  every  man  to  have  such :  we 
cannot  therefore  construe  it  of  voluntary  associa- 
tions formed  for  religious,  social  or  funereal  ob- 
jects ^,  and  for  the  purposes  of  this  law  we  must 
look  upon  gegylda  as  a  general  name  borne  by 
every  individual  in  respect  of  some  gyld  or  asso- 
ciation of  which  he  was  taken  to  be  a  member. 
The  only  meanings  which  the  root  gyld  enables  us 
to  attach  to  the  word  gegylda  are  these  ;  either, 
one  who  shares  with  others  in  paying ;  or,  one  who 
shares  with  others  in  worshipping.  If  we  adopt  the 
former  rendering,  we  must  suppose  that  certain  con- 
tributions were  made  by  a  number  of  persons  to  a 
common  purse,  partly  for  festive  purposes,  partly 
as  a  mutual  guarantee  and  club-fund  for  legal  costs, 
for  the  expenses  of  reciprocal  aid  and  defence,  per- 
haps even  for  mortuary  celebrations  and  chari- 
table distributions.  Another,  though  perhaps  a  less 
probable,  suggestion  is  that  such  gegyldan  may 
have  been  jointly  responsible  for  taxes,  or  the  out- 
fit of  armed  men  who  attended  in  the  fyrd  or  mi- 
litary expedition,  on  behalf  of  them  all.  But  this 
we  cannot  further  illustrate,  in  the  absence  of  all 


'  Such  voluntary  associations  were  not  unusual.  Several  deeds  of 
agreement  of  such  cluhs  are  given  in  an  Appendix  to  this  Chapter. 
There  seems  to  have  heen  similar  clubs  among  the  Hungarians  :  they 
Tvere  called  "  Kalender-Bruderschaften,"  from  usually  meeting  on  the 
first  day  of  every  month.     Fessler,  Qesch.  der  Ungern,  i.  725. 


240  THK  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

record  of.  the  financial  system  of  the  early  Teutonic 
monarchs,  even  those  of  Charlemagne  himself,  which 
would  have  been   invaluable   guides  to  us  through 
the  intricacies  of  that  dark  subject  of  enquiry.    The 
second  meaning  given  to  gegylda  would  rest  upon 
the  assumption  of  some  private  and  as  it  were  hero- 
worship,  common  to  the  gyld-brothers, — a  fact  fa- 
miliar enough  to  us  in  the  Athenian  (pvXal  and 
Roman  gentes ;  but  the  existence  of  any  such  foun- 
dation for  the  gyld  among  the  Anglosaxons  is  ex- 
tremely improbable,   when  we  consider  the  small 
numbers  that  appear  to  have  constituted  the  as- 
sociation, and   that   no   trace  of  any  such  worship 
remains  in  our  heathen  mythology  i.     I  therefore 
prefer  the  first  rendering  of  the  word,  and  look  upon 
gegyldan  as  representing  those  who  mutually  pay 
for  one  another ;  that  is,  under  a  system  of  pecu- 
niary mulcts,  those  who  are  mutually  responsible 
before  the  law, — the  associates  in  the  tithing  and 
the  hundred. 

It  is  well  known  that  in  the  later  Anglosaxon 
law,  and  even  to  this  day,  the  tithing  and  hundred 
appear  as  local  and  territorial,  not  as  numerical 
divisions  :  we  hear  of  tithings  where  there  are  more, 
and  tithings  where  there  are  fewer  people ;  we  are 
told  of  the  spoor  of  cattle  being  followed  into  one 
hundred,  or  out  of  another 2.  I  do  not  deny  that 
in  process  of  time  these  divisions  had  become  ter- 

'  The  later  guilds  of  trades,  dedicated  to  particular  Saints,  are  quite 
a  different  thing  ;  in  form  these  bear  a  most  striking  resemblance  to 
the  cjiv'Kai. 

2  Leg.  Eadg.  Hund.  §  5.     Thorpe,  i.  260. 


CH.  EC.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  241 

ritorial ;  but  this  does  not  of  necessity  invalidate  the 
doctrine  that  originally  the  numbers  were  calculated 
according  to  the  heads  of  families,  or  that  the  ex- 
tent of  territory,  and  not  the  taxable,  military  or  cor- 
porate units,  formed  at  first  the  varying  quantity. 
Had  it  been  otherwise  we  should  naturally  have 
found  a  much  greater  equality  in  the  size  of  the 
territorial  hundreds  throughout  at  least  each  Saxon 
kingdom;  nor  in  all  probability  would  the  num- 
bers of  the  hundreds  in  respective  counties  differ  so 
widely, — a  difference  intelligible  only  if  we  assume 
population,  and  not  space,  to  have  been  the  basis  of 
the  original  calculation.  Moreover  to  a  very  late 
period,  in  one  part  of  England  the  abstract  word 
Teo'Sung  was  replaced  by  the  more  concrete  Ten- 
mantale  (tyn-manna-tgel)  i,  to  which  it  is  impossible 
to  give  any  meaning  but  the  simple  one  the  words 
express,  viz.  the  tale  or  count  of  ten  men.  Again, 
as  late  as  the  tenth  century,  in  a  part  of  England 
where  men,  and  not  acres,  became  necessarily  the 
subjects  of  calculation,  viz.  in  the  city  of  London^, 
we  find  the  citizens  distributing  themselves  into 
Fri'Sgylds  or  associations  for  the  maintenance  of  the 
peace,  each  consisting  of  ten  men ;  while  ten  such 


'  Leg.  Ed.  Conf.  xx. 

-  I  do  not  for  a  moment  imagine  that  thia  was  an  entirely  new  or- 
ganization. The  document  which  contains  the  record  seems  to  lie  the 
text  of  a  solemn  undertaking,  almost  a  treaty  of  alliance,  between  the 
City  and  king  ^ISelstan,  for  the  better  maintenance  of  the  public  peace. 
It  is  perhaps  worth  attention  that  the  Tyn-manua-tjel  was  a  denomina- 
tion peculiar  to  another  large  city — York  :  but  the  same  authority  from 
which  we  learn  this  fact,  identifies  the  institution  with  that  in  common 
use  throughout  the  land.  Leg.  Ed.  Oonf  xx. 

VOL.  I.  E 


242  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

gylds  were  gathered  into  a  Hundred.  The  remark- 
able document  known  as  "  Judicia  Civitatis  Londi- 
nensis  "  gives  the  following  detailed  account  of  the 
whole  proceeding : 

"  This  is  the  ordinance  which  the  bishops  and 
the  reeves  belonging  to  London  have  ordained,  and 
confirmed  with  pledges,  among  our  friSgylds,  as 
well  eorlish  as  ceorlish,  in  addition  to  the  dooms 
which  were  fixed  at  Greatley,  at  Exeter,  and  at 
Thundersfield. 

"  Eesolved :  That  we  count  every  ten  men  to- 
gether, and  the  chief  one  to  direct  the  nine  in  each 
of  those  duties  which  we  have  all  ordained,  and 
afterwards  the  hyndens  of  them  together,  and  one 
hynden-man  who  shall  admonish  the  ten  for  our 
common  benefit;  and  let  these  eleven  hold  the 
money  of  the  hynden,  and  decide  what  they  shall 
disburse,  when  aught  is  to  pay,  and  what  they  shall 
receive,  should  money  accrue  to  us  at  our  common 
suit^ 

"  That  we  gather  to  us  once  in  every  month,  if 
we  can  and  ha,ve  leisure,  the  hynden-men  and  those 
who  direct  the  tithings,  as  well  with  butt-filling,  or 
as  else  may  please  us,  and  know  what  of  our  agree- 
ment has  been  executed.  And  let  these  twelve  men^ 
have  their  refection  together,  and  feed  themselves 
as  they  themselves  think  right,  and  deal  the  remains 
of  the  meat  for  love  of  God^." 


>  ^ESelst.  V.  3,  §  1.  Thorpe,  i.  230. 

'  The  MS.  reads  xii,  twelve,  tut  it  seems  almost  certain  that  we 
ought  to  understand  eleven,  that  is  one  man  for  each  tithing  and  one 
for  the  hundred  or  hynden.  ^  ^tSelst.  v.  8.  §  1.  Thorpe,  i.  236. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  243 

Now  as  this  valuable  record  mentions  also  terri- 
toi'ial  tithings,  containing  different  amounts  of  po- 
pulation i,  it  seems  to  me  to  furnish  important  con- 
firmation of  the  conclusion  that  the  gegyldan  of  Ini 
and  JSlfred,  the  members  of  the  London  tithings 
or  fri^gylds  of  ten,  and  the  York  tenmantale,  are 
in  truth  identical.  And  it  is  further  in  favour  of 
this  view  that  the  citizens  called  the  members  of 
such  gildships,  gegyldan  ^  : — 

"And  we  have  also  ordained,  respecting  every 
man  who  has  given  his  pledge  in  our  gyldships, 
that,  should  he  die,  each  gyld-brother  (gegylda) 
shall  give  a  gesufel-loaf  for  his  soul,  and  sing  a 
fifty  (psalms),  or  cause  the  same  to  be  sung  within 
XXX  days." 

Upon  a  revieAV  of  the  preceding  passages  it  may 
be  inferred  that  the  hynden  consisted  of  ten  tithings, 
and  consequently  answered  to  what  we  more  com- 
monly call  a  hundred :  it  may  perhaps  be  suggested 
that,  if  any  distinction  existed  between  these  two 
terms,  ^the  hynden  represented  the  numerical,  the 
hundred  the  territorial  division.  But  their  origi- 
nal identity  may  be  argued  from  an  important  pas- 
sage in  the  law  of  Ini.     He  ordains^  :  "  He  that  is 

'  "  Swfi  of  anre  tetfSung  'Saer  mare  folo  sig."     Thorpe,  i.  232. 

'  "  And  we  cwBedon  eac  be  eeloum  'Sara  marma  ^e  on  lirum  gegyld- 
soipum  hia  wedgeseald  hsef'S,  gif  him  for^i'S  gebyrige,  'Sset  selc  gegylda 
gesylle  jenne  gesufelne  hlaf  for  Stere  sawle,  and  gesinge  an  fiftig,  o^e 
begite  gesungen  binnan  xxx  nihtan."  iE^elst.  v.  8.  §  6.  Thorpe,  i.  236- 

^  "  Se^e  bi^  werfseh'Se  betogen,  and  he  onsaoan  wille  ^ses  sieges  mid 
a^e,  'Sonne  sceal  beon  on  ISsere  hyndenne  an  cyningalS  be  xxx  hida, 
s\\k  be  gesi'Scund  men  swa  be  ceorliscum,  swa  hwse'Ser  swa  hit  sy." 
Ini.  §  54.  Thorpe,  i.  136.  Upon  this  passage  the  late  Mr.  Price  had  the 
following  note,  which  is  interesting,  though  I  cannot  agree  with  his 

e2 


244  THE  S-IXOXS  IN  ENGLAXD.  [booit  i. 

charged  with  mortal  feud,  and  is  willing  to  deny  the 
slaying  on  oath  ;  then  shall  there  be  in  the  hynden 
one  king's  oath  of  thirty  hides,  as  well  for  a  noble 
as  a  churl,  be  it  whichever  it  be." 

Now  hynden  can  only  mean  one  of  two  things, 
viz.  a  collection  of  ten  or  a  collection  of  a  hundred, 
according  as  we  render  the  word  hund.  Admitting 
that  at  some  very  early  period  hund  did  mean  ten, 
we  yet  never  find.it  with  any  such  signification  in 
any  book  or  MS.,  or  indeed  at  all  except  in  the  nu- 
merals hundseofontig,  hundeatatig,  hundnigontig, 
hundtwelftig,  where  its  force  is  anything  but  clear, 
when  we  compare  those  words  with  fiftig,  sixtig, 
twentig,  etc.  On  the  other  hand  the  adjective 
hynde  does  clearly  denote  something  which  has 
the  quality  of  a  hundred  ;  thus  a  twyhynde  or  twelf- 
hynde  man  is  he  whose  life  is  worth  respectively  two 
or  twelve  hundred  shillings.  Again  it  is  clear  that 
the  Judicia  Civitatis  Londinensis  intends  by  hynden 
a  collection  of  a  hundred,  and  not  of  ten,  men, 
inasmuch  as  it  distinguishes  this  from  the  tithings. 

conclusion :  "  It  lias  been  already  observed  that  the  hynden  consisted 
of  ten  persons,  and,  like  hynde  in  the  words  twyhynde,  sixhynde,  twelf- 
hynde,  appears  to  have  been  formed  from  hund,  of  which  the  original 
meaning  was  ten.  The  hynden  therefore  will  correspond  to  the  turha 
of  the  Civil  Law  ('  quia  Turba  decern  dicuntur.'  Leg.  Prset.  4.  §  Tur- 
bam),  the  Tourhe  of  the  French  Coutumes :  '  Ooutume  si  doit  verefler 
par  deux  tourbes  et  chacun  d'icelles  par  dix  temoins.'  Loisel.  liv.  v. 
tit.  5.  c.  13."  But  the  correspondence  noted  will  entirely  depend  upon 
the  fact  of  the  hynden  really  being  a  collection  of  ten  men,  which  I  do 
not  admit.  There  is  no  dispute  as  to  the  meaning  of  Turha  or  Tourhe : 
but  if,  as  it  is  not  impossible,  turba  should  be  really  identical  with  I'Orp, 
vicus,  it  might  deserve  consideration  whether  the  original  village  was 
not  supposed  to  consist  of  ten  families  and  so  to  form  the  tithing  or 
gyldscipe. 


CH.  IX.]  TPIE  TITPIING  AND  HUNDRED.  245 

And  further,  it  must  be  admitted,  upon  the  internal 
evidence  of  the  law  itself,  that  a  hundred  and  not  a 
tithing  is  referred  to,  since  so  small  a  court  as  that 
of  the  ten  men  could  not  possibly  have  had  cogni- 
zance of  such  a  plea  as  manslaughter,  or  been  com- 
petent to  demand  a  king's  oath  of  thirty  hides. 
But  as  such  a  plea  might  vs'ell  be  brought  before 
the  hundred-court,  it  is  probable  that  such  was 
meant.  Lastly  it  was  the  custom  for  the  hundred- 
court  to  be  holden  monthly,  and  we  observe  the 
same  provision  with  the  London  hynden ;  at  which 
it  is  very  probable  that  legal  matters  were  trans- 
acted, as  well  as  accounts  investigated ;  for  it  is 
expressly  declared  that  their  meeting  is  to  ascer- 
tain how  the  undertakings  in  the  record  have  been 
executed ;  that  is,  how  the  peace  has  been  kept.  I 
therefore  conclude  that  the  Hynden  and  the  Hun- 
dred are  in  fact  and  were  at  first  identical;  with 
the  hypothetical  reservation,  that  at  a  later  period 
the  one  word  represented  a  numerical,  the  other  a 
territorial  division,  when  these  two  had  ceased  to 
coincide :  in  corroboration  of  which  view  it  may  be 
observed  that  the  word  Hynden  does  not  occur  in 
the  laws  later  than  the  time  of  ^'Selstan,  nor  Hun- 
dred earlier  than  that  of  Eadgar. 

It  is  true  that  no  division  founded  upon  numbers 
can  long  continue  to  coincide  with  the  first  cor- 
responding territorial  allocation,  however  closely 
they  may  have  been  at  first  adjusted.  In  spite  of 
every  attempt  to  regulate  it,  population  varies  in- 
cessantly ;  but  the  tendency  of  land-divisions  is  to 


246  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [mox  i. 

remain  stationary  for  ages  ^ ;  a  holy  horror  prevents 
the  alteration  of  that  which  has  been  sanctified  in 
men's  minds  by  long  continuance,  was  perhaps 
more  deeply  sanctified  at  the  first  by  religious  cere- 
monies. The  rights  of  property  universally  demand 
the  jealous  guardianship  of  boundaries.  Moreover 
the  first  tithings,  or  at  all  events  the  first  hundreds, 
must  have  had  elbowroom  enough  within  the  Mark 
to  allow  for  a  considerable  elasticity  of  population 
without  the  necessity  of  disturbing  the  ancient 
boundary ;  and  thus  we  can  readily  understand  two 
very  distinct  things  to  have  grown  up  together, 
out  of  one  origin,  namely  a  constantly  increasing 
number  of  gylds,  yet  a  nearly  or  entirely  stationary 
tale  of  territorial  tithings  and  hundreds.  I  cannot 
but  think  that,  under  happier  circumstances,  this 
view  might  lead  us  to  conclusions  of  the  utmost 
importance  with  respect  to  the  history  of  our  race : 
that  if  it  were  possible  for  us  now  to  ascertain  the 
original  number  of  hundreds  in  any  county  of  which 
Beda  in  the  eighth  century  gives  us  the  population, 
and  also  the  population  at  the  period  of  the  original 
division,  we  should  find  the  two  data  in  exact  ac- 
cordance, and  thus  obtain  a  clue  to  the  movement 
of  the  population  itself  down  to  Beda's  time.  Look- 
ing to  the  permanent  character  of  land-divisions, 

1  It  is  very  remarkable  liow  many  modern  parishes  may  be  perambu- 
lated with  no  other  direction  than  the  boundaries  found  in  the  Codex 
Diplomaticus.  To  this  very  day  the  little  hills,  brooks,  even  meadows 
and  small  farms,  bear  the  names  they  bore  before  the  time  of  Alfred, 
and  the  Mark  may  be  traced  with  certainty  upon  the  local  information 
of  the  labourer  on  the  modem  estate. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  247 

and  assuming  that  our  present  Hundreds  nearly 
represent  the  original  in  number  and  extent,  we 
might  conclude  that,  if  in  the  year  400  Kent  was 
first  divided,  Thanet  then  contained  only  one  hun- 
dred heads  of  houses,  or  hydes,  upon  three  thou- 
sand acres  of  cultivated  land,  while  in  the  time  of 
Beda,  three  centuries  later,  it  comprised  six  hundred 
families  or  hides  upon  eighteen  thousand  acres. 

It  is  a  common  saying  that  we  owe  the  insti- 
tution of  shire,  tithing  and  hundred  divisions  to 
iElfred.  Stated  in  so  broad  a  manner  as  this,  I  am 
compelled  to  deny  the  assertion.  No  one  can  con- 
template the  life  and  acts  of  that  great  prince  and 
accomplished  man  without  being  filled  with  admi- 
ration and  respect  for  his  personal  energy,  his 
moral  and  enlightened  policy,  and  the  sound  legis- 
lative as  well  as  administrative  principles  on  which 
he  acted.  But  we  must  nevertheless  not  in  the 
nineteenth  century  allow  ourselves  to  be  blinded 
by  the  passions  and  prejudices  which  ruled  in  the 
twelfth.  The  people,  oppressed  by  foreign  power, 
no  doubt,  long  looked  back  with  an  affectionate 
regret  to  the  memory  of  "England's  Darling;"  he 
was  the  hero  of  a  suffering  nation;  his  activity 
and  fortune  had  once  cleared  the  land  of  Norman 
tyranny  ;  his  arm  had  smitten  the  forefathers  of 
those  whose  iron  yoke  now  weighed  on  England : 
he  was  the  reputed  author  of  those  laws,  which, 
under  the  amended  and  extended  form  enacted  by 
the  Confessor,  were  now  claimed  by  the  English 
people  from  their  foreign  kings :  he  was,  in  a  word, 
the  representative,  and  as  it  were  very  incarnation, 


248  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  English  nationality.  We  may  smile  at,  but  must 
yet  respect,  the  feeling  which  made  him  also  the 
representative  of  every  good  thing,  which  connected 
every  institution  or  custom  that  his  suffering  coun- 
trymen regretted,  with  his  time-hallowed  name.  It 
is  unnecessary  to  detail  the  many  ways  in  which 
this  traditional  character  of  ^Elfred  continually  re- 
appears; the  object  of  these  remarks  is  merely  to 
point  out  that  the  attribution  to  him  of  the  system 
of  tithings,  hundreds  and  the  like,  is  one  of  many 
groundless  assertions  connected  with  his  name. 
Not  one  word  in  corroboration  of  it  is  to  be  found 
in  Asser  or  any  other  contemporaneous  authority  ; 
and  there  is  abundant  evidence  that  the  system 
existed  long  before  he  was  born,  not  only  in  other 
German  lands,  but  even  among  ourselves.  Still  I 
am  unwilling  to  incur  the  responsibility  of  decla- 
ring the  tradition  absolutely  without  foundation  : 
on  the  contrary  it  seems  probable  that  Alfred  may 
have  found  it  necessary,  after  the  dreadful  confu- 
sion and  devastation  of  the  Danish  wars,  to  make  a 
new  muster  or  regulation  of  the  tithings,  nay  even 
to  cause,  in  some  districts,  a  new  territorial  division 
to  be  established  upon  the  old  principle ;  and  this 
is  the  more  credible,  since  there  is  reason  to  believe 
that  the  same  causes  had  rendered  a  new  definition 
of  boundaries  generally  necessary  even  in  the  case 
of  private  estates :  the  strongest  argument  against 
this  lies  however  in  the  total  silence  of  all  contem- 
porary writers.  A  less  tenable  supposition  is,  that 
Alfred  introduced  such  divisions  for  the  first  time 
into  the  countries  which  he  united  with  Wessex  ;  as 


CH.  IX.]  TPIE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  249 

it  is  impossible  to  conceive  any  Anglosaxon  state 
to  have  existed  entirely  without  them. 

The  form  and  nature  of  the  institution,  long 
known  in  the  English  law  under  the  name  of  Frank- 
pledge ^,  may  be  compendiously  described  in  the 
words  of  the  laws  called  Edward  the  Confessor's^. 
According  to  that  document, — 

"Another  peace,  the  greatest  of  all,  there  is, 
whereby  all  are  maintained  in  firmer  state,  to  wit 
in  the  establishment  of  a  guarantee,  which  the  En- 


'  An  early  confusion  gave  rise  to  the  reading  of  Freoborh,  libermn 
phgium,  free  pledge,  frank-pledge,  for  Fri'Sborh,  the  pledge  or  gua- 
rantee of  peace,  pads  plegmm.  The  distinction  is  essential  to  the  com- 
prehension of  this  institution. 

^  This  is  given  here  only  as  the  most  detailed  account :  the  principle 
was  as  old  as  the  Anglosaxon  monarchy  itself,  or  older.  The  law  of 
Eadgar  thus  expresses  it :  "  Let  every  man  so  order,  that  he  have  a 
surety,  and  let  the  surety  (borh)  bring  and  hold  him  to  every  right ; 
and  if  any  one  then  offend  and  escape,  let  the  surety  bear  what  he 
ought  to  bear.  But  if  it  be  a  thief,  and  the  surety  can  get  hold  of  him 
within  twelve  months,  let  him  sun'ender  the  thief  to  justice,  and  let 
what  he  before  paid  be  restored  to  him."  Eadg.  ii.  §  6.  Thorpe,  i.  268. 
"  This  then  is  my  wiU,  that  every  man  be  in  surety,  both  within  the 
towns  and  without  the  towns."    Eadg.  ii.  supp.  §  3.   Thorpe,  i.  274. 

"  Let  every  freeman  have  a  true  borh,  who  may  present  him  to  every 
right,  should  he  be  accused."  ^«elred,  i.  §  1.   Thorpe,  i.  280. 

"  If  he  flee  from  the  ordeal,  let  the  borh  pay  for  him  according  to 
his  wer."  JESelr.  iii.  §  6.   Thorpe,  i.  296. 

"And  we  will  that  every  freeman  be  brought  into  a  hundred  and  into 
a  tithing,  who  desires  to  be  entitled  to  lad  or  wer,  in  case  any  one 
should  slay  him  after  he  have  reached  the  age  of  xii  years  :  or  let  him 
not  otherwise  be  entitled  to  any  free  rights,  be  he  householder,  be  he 
follower.  And  let  every  one  be  brought  into  a  hundred  and  a  surety, 
and  let  the  surety  hold  and  lead  him  to  every  plea."  Cnut,  ii.  §  20. 
Thorpe,  i.  386. 

The  stranger  or  friendless  man,  who  had  no  borh,  i.  e.  could  not 
find  bail,  must  be  committed,  at  the  first  charge ;  and  instead  of  clear- 
ing himself  by  the  oaths  of  his  friends,  must  run  the  risk  and  endure 
the  pain  of  the  ordeal.   Cnut,  ii.  §  35.  Thorpe,  i.  396. 


250  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

glish  call  Fri'Sborgas,  with  the  exception  of  the  men 
of  York,  who  call  it  Tenmannetale,  that  is,  the 
number  of  ten  men.  And  it  consists  in  this,  that 
in  all  the  vills  throughout  the  kingdom,  all  men 
are  bound  to  be  in  a  guarantee  by  tens,  so  that  if 
one  of  the  ten  men  offend,  the  other  nine  may  hold 
him  to  right.  But  if  he  should  flee,  and  they  allege 
that  they  could  not  have  him  to  right,  then  should 
be  given  them  by  the  king's  justice  a  space  of  at 
least  thirty  days  and  one :  and  if  they  could  find 
him  they  might  bring  him  to  justice.  But  for  him- 
self, let  him  out  of  his  own  restore  the  damage  he 
had  done,  or  if  the  oifence  be  so  grave  let  justice 
be  done  upon  his  body.  But  if  within  the  aforesaid 
term  he  could  not  be  found,  since  in  every  friSborh 
there  was  one  headman  whom  they  called  fri^borg- 
heved,  then  this  headman  should  take  two  of  the 
best  men  of  his  friSborh,  and  the  headman  of  each 
of  the  three  fri'Sborgs  most  nearly  neighbouring  to 
his  own,  and  likewise  two  of  the  best  in  each,  if  he 
can  have  them ;  and  so  with  the  eleven  others  he 
shall,  if  he  can,  clear  both  himself  and  his  fri'Sborh 
both  of  the  off'ence  and  flight  of  the  aforesaid  ma- 
lefactor. Which  if  he  cannot  do,  he  shall  restore 
the  damage  done  out  of  the  property  of  the  doer, 
so  long  as  this  shall  last,  and  out  of  his  own  and 
that  of  his  fri'Sborh :  and  they  shall  make  amends 
to  the  justice  according  as  it  shall  be  by  law  ad- 
judged them.  And  moreover  the  oath  which  they 
could  not  complete  with  the  venue,  the  nine  them- 
selves shall  make,  viz.  that  they  had  no  part  in  the 
ofl'ence.     And  if  at  any  time  they  can  recover  him, 


CH.  rx.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  251 

they  shall  bring  him  to  the  justice,' if  they  can,  or 
tell  the  justice  where  he  is^." 

Thus  the  object  of  the  gylds  or  tithings  was,  f 
that  each  man  should  be  in  pledge  or  surety  [horh) 
as  well  to  his  fellow-man  as  to  the  state  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  public  peace :  that  he  should 
enjoy  protection  for  life,  honour  and  property  him- 
self, and  be  compelled  to  respect  the  life,  honour 
and  property  of  others  :  that  he  should  have  a  fixed 
and  settled  dwelling  where  he  could  be  found  when 
required,  where  the  public  dues  could  be  levied, 
and  the  public  services  demanded  of  him  :  lastly 
that,  if  guilty  of  actions  that  compromised  the 
public  weal  or  trenched  upon  the  rights  and  well- 
being  of  others,  there  might  be  persons  especially 
appointed  to  bring  him  to  justice;  and  if  injured 
by  others,  supporters  to  pursue  his  claim  and  exact 
compensation  for  his  wrong.  All  these  points  seem 
to  have  been  very  well  secured  by  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Tithings,  to  whom  the  community 
looked  as  responsible  for  the  conduct  of  every  in- 
dividual comprised  within  them  ;  and  coupled  with 
the  family  obligations  which  still  remained  in  force 
in  particular  cases,  they  amply  answered  the  pur- 
pose of  a  mutual  guarantee  between  all  classes  of 
men.  The  system  possessed  the  advantage  of  being 
necessarily  regulated  by  neighbourhood,  and  it  was 
free  from  some  disadvantages  which  might  have 
attended  an  exclusive  reliance  upon  kinsmanship : 

'  "De  fri^borgis,  et  quod  soli  Etoracenses  vocant  friSborcli  Ten- 
mannetale,  i.  e.  sermo  decern  hominum,"  etc.  Leg.  Edw.  Conf.  x.x. 
Thorpe,  i.  450. 


252  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  fri'Sborgas  mot  having  the  bond  of  blood  be- 
tween them,  which  might  have  induced  an  improper 
partiality  in  favour  of  one  of  their  members ;  and 
as  they  stood  under  responsibility  for  every  act  of 
a  gyldsman,  being  interested  in  preventing  an  un- 
due interference  on  the  part  of  his  family.    We  thus 
see  that  the  gyldsmen  were  not  only  bound  to  pre- 
sent their  fellows  before  the  court  of  the  freemen 
when  specially  summoned  thereto,  but  that  they 
found  their  own  advantage  in  exercising  a  kind  of 
police-surveillance  over  them  all :  if  a  crime  were 
committed,  the  gyld  were  to  hold  the  criminal  to  his 
answer ;  to  clear  him,  if  they  could  conscientiously 
do  so,  by  making  oath  in  his  favour ;  to  aid  in  pay- 
ing his  fine  if  found  guilty  ;  and  if  by  flying  from 
justice  he  admitted  his  crime,  they  were  to  purge 
themselves  on  oath  from  all  guilty  knowledge  of  the 
act,  and  all  participation  in  his  flight ;  failing  which, 
they  were,  themselves  to  suffer  mulct  in  proportion 
to  his  offence.     On  the  other  hand  they  were  to 
receive  at  least  a  portion  of  the  compensation  for 
his  death,  or  of  such  other  sums  as  passed  from 
hand  to  hand  during  the  progress  of  an  Anglosaxon 
suit.     Being  his  neighbours,  the  visnetum,  vicinage 
or  venue^  they  were  his  natural   compurgators  or 
witnesses,  and   consequently,    being   examined  ou 
'  oath,  in  some  sense  ihejurati  ox  jurors  upon  whose 
verdict  his  weal  or  woe  depended.     And  thus  the 
importance  of  character,  so  frequently  appealed  to 
even  in  our  modern  jurisprudence,  was  carried  to 
the  highest  extent. 

We  may  reasonably  conclude  that  the  close  in- 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  263 

tercourse  thus  created,  was  improved  to  private 
and  social  purposes,  and  that  these  gylds,  like  the 
much  larger  associations  of  the  same  name  in  after 
times,  knew  how  to  combine  pleasure  with  business. 
The  citizens  of  London  hint  at  a  monthly  sympo- 
sium or  treat,  with  hutt-fiUing,  when  the  tithing- 
men  met  together  to  settle  the  affairs  of  their  re- 
spective hundreds, — a  trait  not  yet  extinct  in  the 
civic,  or  indeed  the  national,  character.  There  can 
also  be  little  doubt  that  the  gylds  even  formed 
small  courts  of  arbitration,  as  well  as  police,  for  the 
settlement  of  such  trifling  disputes  between  mem- 
bers of  the  same  gyld,  as  were  not  worthy  of  being 
reserved  for  the  interference  of  a  superior  tribunal  ^ ; 
and  it  is  also  probable  that  the  members  consi- 
dered themselves  bound  to  aid  in  the  festivities  or 
do  honour  to  the  obsequies  of  any  individual  gyld- 
brother:  the  London  gyldsmen  were  to  distribute 
alms,  and  cause  religious  services  to  be  performed 
at  the  decease  of  a  fellow ;  and  it  is  obvious  that 
this  sharing  in  a  religious  obligation,  the  benefits  of 
Avhich  were  to  extend  even  into  another  life,  must 

'  The  law  of  Eadweard  the  Confessor  shows  this  clearly :  "  Cum 
aiitem  viderunt  quod  aliqui  stulti  libenter  forisfaciebant  erga  viciuos 
suos,  sapientiores  coeperunt  consilium  inter  se,  quomodo  eos  reprime- 
rent,  et  sic  imposuerunt  iusticiarios  super  quosque  decern  fri'Sborgos, 
quos  decanos  possumus  dicere,  Anglice  autem  tyenSe-heved  vocati 
sunt,  hoc  est  caput  decern.  Isti  autem  inter  villas,  inter  vicinos  tracta- 
bant  causas,  et  secundum  quod  forisfacturae  erant,  emendationes  et 
ordiuationes  faoiebant,  videlicet  de  pascuis,  de  pratis,  de  messibus,  de 
certationibus  inter  vicinos,  et  de  multis  huiusmodi  quae  frequenter 
insurgunt."  §  xxviii.  How  clearly  has  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Tithing 
here  superseded  that  of  the  ancient  Mark ! 


254  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

have  impressed  somewhat  of  a  solemn  and  sacred 
character  upon  the  whole  institution  i. 

Much  of  what  has  been  observed  respecting  the 
tithing,  applies  also  to  the  hundred.  This,  it  has 
been  seen,  was  originally  a  collection  of  ten  tithings, 
and  was  presided  over  by  a  hundredes  ealdor^,  or 
hundred-man,  who  exercised  a  jurisdiction  over  his 
circuit  and  its  inhabitants.  From  the  concurrent 
practice  of  later  periods  we  may  conclude  that  his 
court  was  holden  monthly  for  the  hearing  of  such 
civil  and  lighter  criminal  causes  as  could  not  be 
settled  in  the  tithing,  or  interested  more  tithings 
than  one^.  It  is  not  probable  that  the  higher 
criminal  causes  could  at  any  period  be  pursued 
in  the  hundred*,  but  that  they  were  necessarily 
reserved  for  the  consideration  of  the  folcmot  or 


'■  In  what  may  be  called  tlie  Act  of  Constitution  of  Orcy's  Gyld  at 
Abbotsbury,  tbis  feature  is  very  prominent.  I  have  therefore  appended 
the  instrument  in  an  Appendix  to  this  chapter,  although  as  a  voluntary 
gyld  it  differs  in  some  respect  from  those  heretofore  under  consider- 
ation. The  trade-giiilds  of  the  Middle  Ages  paid  also  especial  attention 
to  the  religious  communion  of  their  members. 

°  The  word  Borseholder  renders  it  probable  that  the  capitalis,  tyn- 
manna  heafod,  yldesta,  etc.,  bore  among  the  Saxons  the  name  of  Borges- 
ealdor,  princeps  plegii. 

'  This  again  we  learn  from  the  law  attributed  to  Eadweard  the  Con- 
fessor. "  Cum  autem  maiores  causae  insurgebant  (that  is  greater  than 
those  which  concerned  the  tithing),  referebant  eas  ad  alios  maiores  ius- 
tioiarios,  quos  sapientes  supradicti  super  eos  constituerant,  scilicet  super 
decem  decanos,  quos  possumus  vocare  centenarios,  quia  super  centum 
friiSborgos  iudicabant."  §  xxix. 

*  I  find  no  instance  of  a  hundredes  man  having  the  llut-hann  or  ius 
gladii:  but  in  the  time  of  Eadgar,  he  seems  to  have  had  power  to  ad- 
minister the  single  and  threefold  ordeal ;  whether  only  in  the  case  of 
serfs  does  not  appear.     Inst.  Hundr.  Thorpe,  i.  260. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHINa  AND  HUNDRED.  256 

shire-court,  which  met  three  times  in  the  year.  In 
the  later  legislation,  trial  of  capital  oiFences  was  re- 
served for  the  scyremot,  and  the  words  of  Tacitus  ^ 
seem  to  imply  that  this  was  the  case  in  his  time 
also :  perhaps  even  such  causes  as  involved  the 
penalties  of  outlawry  may  have  been  beyond  the  ju- 
risdiction of  the  hundred.  It  is  however  less  as  a 
court  of  justice  than  as  part  of  a  system  for  the  main- 
tenance of  peace,  that  we  are  to  contemplate  the 
hundred.  It  may  be  securely  aiBrmed  that  where 
the  tithing  alone  could  not  be  made  responsible,  or 
more  tithings  than  one  were  involved  in  a  similar 
difficulty  as  to  crimes  committed  by  their  members, 
resort  was  had  to  the  responsibility  of  the  collective 
hundred, — a  principle  which,  it  is  well-known,  sub- 
sists even  to  this  day. 

At  a  comparatively  late  period,  we  occasionally 
find  a  consolidation  of  hundreds  into  one  body,  for 
judicial  purposes,  presided  over  by  the  ealdorman 
of  the  shire,  or  his  gerefa,  and  forming  a  subsidiary 
court  to  the  shiremoot :  and  after  immunities,  or 
private  jurisdictions,  had  become  rapidly  extended, 
it  is  certain  that  such  consolidations  were  not  un- 
usual, in  the  hands  of  great  civil  or  ecclesiastical 
authorities,  and  that  they,  by  means  of  their  officers 
or  gerefan,  held  plea  in  several  hundreds  at  once ; 
they  thus  substituted  their  own  power  for  that  of 
the  ealdorman  or  the  sherifi",  in  the  last  instance, 
throughout  the  district  comprehended  by  their  im- 
munity ;  either  replacing  the  old  hundred-men  by 

*  "Licet  apud  concilium  accusare  quoque  et  discrimen  capitis  inten- 
dere."    Germ.  xii. 


256  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  t. 

gerefan  or  bailiffs,  or  suffering  the  hundreds  to  be 
still  governed  and  administered  in  the  way  common 
to  all  such  divisions,  by  the  elective  officer  i. 

It  stands  to  reason  that  the  system  above  de- 
scribed applied  only  to  the  really  free.  It  vpas  the 
form  of  the  original  compact  betvreen  the  inde- 
pendent members  of  an  independent  community. 
But  as  by  the  side  of  the  free  landholders,  there 
dwelt  also  unfree  men  of  various  ranks,  so  also 
there  existed  modifications  of  the  original  compact, 
suited  to  their  condition.  Those  who  in  a  more  or 
less  stringent  degree  were  dependent,  could  not  be 
members  of  the  tithing,  the  hundred  or  the  folcmot. 
They  stood  to  right  among  themselves,  in  their 
lord's  court,  not  in  the  people's,  and  in  the  latter 
they  could  not  appear  for  themselves.  The  institu- 
tion therefore  which  provided  that  the  lord  might 
maintain  a  Comitatus  or  following,  provided  also 
that  its  members  should  all  be  in  his  mund  (pro- 
tection) and  borh  (surety),  and  that  he  should  make 
answer  for  them  in  the  courts  from  which  they 
were  themselves  excluded  2. 

^  Eadweard  the  Confessor  granted  the  hundred  of  Hommere  in 
Berkshire  to  Ordric,  abbat  of  Abingdon ;  "  so  that  no  sheriff  or  moot- 
reeve  may  hold  therein  any  plea  or  moot,  without  the  Abbat's  own 
command  and  permission."  Cod.  Dip.  No.  840.  He  also  granted 
the  hundred  of  Godley  in  Surrey  to  Wulfwold,  Abbat  of  Chertsey, 
and  forbade  the  sheriff  to  meddle  in  the  same.  Cod.  Dip.  No.  840, 
849. 

^  "  And  let  every  lord  have  his  household  in  his  own  horh.  Then  if 
any  of  them  should  be  accused,  and  escape,  let  the  lord  pay  the  man's  wer 
to  the  king.  And  if  any  accuse  the  lord  that  the  escape  was  by  his  coun- 
sel, let  him  clear  himself  with  five  thanes,  being  himself  the  sixth.  If 
the  purgation  fail  him,  let  him  forfeit  his  wer  to  the  king ;  and  let  the 
man  be  an  outlaw."    ^«elr.  i.  §  1.    Thorpe,  i.  282.     "  And  let  eveiy 


CH.  rs,]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  257 

It  is  difficult  to  decide  whether  the  lords  or  no- 
bles were  at  first  comprised  within  the  popular  cor- 
porations :  it  appears  most  probable  that  they  were 
not ;  that  they  were  sufficient  to  their  own  defence, 
and,  even  from  the  earliest  historical  periods,  in 
possession  of  that  immunity  which  released  their 
lands  from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  popular  tribunals. 
In  respect  therefore  to  the  gylds,  they  may  be  sup- 
posed to  have  held  an  independent,  though  not 
necessarily  hostile,  position,  regulated  indeed  by  the 
public  law :  and  if  they  stood  to  right  with  their 
men,  in  the  folcmot,  it  was  the  collective  power 
and  dignity  of  the  state  with  which  they  had  to 
deal,  and  not  the  smaller  associations,  founded 
upon  necessities  of  which  they  were  not  conscious. 
Their  dependents  were  under  their  guarantee  and 
surety,  as  the  members  of  every  man's  household, 
his  wife, •  children  and  serfs,  were  under  Ms:  for 
them  he  was  responsible  to  the  community  at  large, 
but  he  owed  no  suit  or  service  to  others,  and  if  he 
persisted  in  upholding  wrong,  I  fear  the  only  cor- 
rective was  to  be  found  in  the  inalienable  ius  belli, 
which  resumes  its  power  instantly  upon  the  viola- 
lord  have  his  household  in  his  own  horh,  and  if  any  one  accuse  his 
man  of  any  thing,  let  the  lord  answer  for  him  within  the  hundred, 
wherein  he  is  cited,  a8  just  law  is.  And  if  he  escape,"  etc.  Cnut,  ii. 
§  3] .  Thorpe,  i.  394,  396.  "  Arohiepiscopi,  epiacopi,  comites,  barones 
et  milites  suos,  et  proprios  servientea  suos,  scilicet  dapiferos,  pinoernas, 
camerarios,  cocos,  pistores,  sub  suo  fri^borgo  habebant,  et  ipsi  suos 
armigeros  et  alios  servientes  suos  sub  suo  fri^borgo ;  quod  si  ipsi  forisr 
facerent,  et  clamor  vicinorum  insurgeret  de  eis,  ipsi  haberent  eos  ad 
rectum  in  curia  sua,  si  haberent  sacham  et  socam,  tol  et  theam,  et  iii- 
fangenethef."  Edw.  Conf.  xxi.  Thorpe,  i.  451. 

VOL.  I.  S 


258  THE  SAXONS  IN  EN'GLAND.  [book  i. 

tion  of  that  tacit  understanding  among  men,  that 
the  well-being  of  society  depends  upon  a  regulated 
mutual  forbearance.  Those  were  not  ages  in  which 
acts  of  self-defence  or  righteous  retribution  could 
be  misnamed  revolutions.  But  all  these  remarks 
are  intended  to  apply  only  to  a  state  of  society  in 
which  the  nobles  were  few  and  independent,  the 
people  strong  and  united ;  where  the  people  were 
in  truth  the  aristocracy^,  and  the  nobles  only  their 
chiefs.  The  holder  of  an  immunity  (having  sacn 
and  socn)  in  later  times,  under  a  consolidated 
royalty  representing  the  national  will,  and  in  a 
state  from  which  the  element  of  the  people  had 
nearly  vanished,  through  the  almost  total  vanish- 
ing of  small  independent  freeholds,  was  necessarily 
placed  in  a  very  different  position. 

It  now  remains  only  to  bestow  a  few  words  upon 
the  manner  in  which  the  original  obligations  of  the 
family  bond  were  gradually  brought  to  bear  upon 
the  artificial  organization. 

Upon  a  careful  consideration  of  the  latter  it  ap- 
pears that  its  principal  object  was  gained  when 
either  offences  were  prevented,  or  the  offender  pre- 
sented to  justice :  the  consequences  of  crime,  in  all 
but  a  few  excepted  cases,  fell  not  upon  the  gegyldan 

'  The  freeman  is  a  member  of  an  aristocracT  in  respect  of  ali  the 
nnfree,  whether  these  be  temporarily  so,  as  his  children  and  guests,  or 
permanently  so,  as  his  serfs.  To  be  in  the  jroXiVru/ia,  which  others  are 
not,  to  have  the  franchise  which  others  haTe  not,  to  have  the  freedom 
of  a  city  which  others  have  not,  all  these  are  forms  of  aristocracy, — 
the  aristocracy  of  Greece,  Rome  and  Eng-land.  The  Peers  in  England 
are  not  themselves  exclusively  an  aristocracy :  they  are  the  bom  leaders 
of  one,  which  consists  now  of  ten-pound  householders,  freemen  in 
towns,  and  county  tenants  under  the  Chandos  clause. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  259 

(if  they  could  clear  themselves  of  participation)  but 
upon  the  m^gas  or  relatives i. 

The  laws  of  ^'Selberht,  Wihtrsed  and  Hlo'Shere 
know  nothing  of  gegyldan :  with  them  the  msegas 
are  still  wholly  responsible,  and  even  their  inter- 
vention is  noticed  in  three  cases  only :  ^'Selberht 
provided  that  in  the  event  of  a  manslayer  flying 
the  country,  the  family  should  pay  half  the  wergyld 
of  the  slain^.  Again  he  enacts,  that  if  a  married 
woman  die  without  bearing  children,  the  property 
she  brought  her  husband,  and  that  which  he  settled 
upon  her  after  consummation,  shall  return  to  her 
paternal  relatives^.  According  to  the  legislation  of 
Hlo^here,  if  a  man  died,  leaving  a  wife  and  child, 
the  mother  was  to  have  the  custody  of  the  child  till 
his  tenth  year,  but  the  paternal  kinsmen  were  to 
administer  his  property,  under  satisfactory  pledge 
for  due  discharge  of  their  duty^.     The  regulations 

^  "  And  if  any  one  charge  a  person  in  holy  orders  with  feud  (fsehSe) 
and  say  that  he  was  a  perpetrator  or  adviser  of  homicide,  let  him  clear 
himself  with  hia  kinsmen,  who  must  hear  the  feud  with  him,  or  make 
compensation  for  it.  And  if  he  have  no  kin,  let  him  clear  himself  with 
his  associates  or  fast  for  the  ordeal  hy  bread,  and  so  fare  as  God  may 
ordain."  ^'Selr.  ix.  §  23,  24.  Thorpe,  i.  344.  Cnut,  i.  §  5.  Thorpe, 
i.  363.  The  associates  or  geferan  here  are  probably  his  fellows  in  or- 
ders. But  a  monk  being  released  from  all  family  relations  could  not  be 
implicated  in  the  responsibilities  of  the  meegburh  (ibid.  §  25) ;  "  for  he 
forsakes  his  law  of  kin  (mjeg^lage)  when  he  submits  to  monastic  law." 
Onut,  i.  §  5.    Thorpe,  i.  362. 

^  "  Gif  bana  of  lande  gewite^,  'Sa  msegas  healfne  ledd  forgylden." 
^«elb.  §  23.    Thorpe,  i.  8. 

'  "  Gif  heo  beam  ne  gebyre'S,  fsederingmEegas  feoh  agen  and  mor- 
gengyfe."   ^«elb.  §  81.     Thorpe,  i.  24. 

*  "  Gif  ceorl  acwyle  be  libbendum  wife  and  bearne,  riht  is  ^86t  hit, 
tSaet  beam,  madder  folgige ;  and  him  man  an  his  fsederingmeegum  wil- 
sumne  berigean  geselle,  his  feoh  to  healdenne  o^set  he  tynwintre  sie," 
Hlo«h.  §  0.    Thorpe,  i.  30. 

S2 


260  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  Ini  allow  us  to  enter  still  further  into  the  nature 
of  the  family  engagement.  He  enacted  that  if  a 
stranger  came  through  the  wood  out  of  the  high- 
way, and  attempted  to  slink  through  in  secret, 
without  shouting  or  blowing  his  horn,  he  should  be 
taken  to  be  a  thief,  and  might  be  slain  or  forced  to 
pay  according  to  his  presumed  crime :  and  if  the 
slayer  were  then  pursued  for  his  wergyld,  he  might 
make  oath  that  he  slew  him  for  a  thief,  and  the  lord 
and  the  gegyldan  of  the  dead  man  should  not  be 
allowed  to  make  oath  to  the  contrary :  but  if  the 
slayer  had  at  the  time  concealed  the  deed,  and  it 
was  only  afterwards  discovered,  a  presumption  of 
unfair  dealing  was  raised  against  him,  and  the  kin- 
dred of  the  dead  man  were  entitled  to  make  oath  of 
his  innocence  ^.  Again  if  a  stranger  Avere  slain,  the 
king  was  to  have  two  parts  of  his  wergyld,  the  son 
or  relatives  of  the  dead  man  might  claim  the  third ; 
but  if  there  were  no  relatives,  the  king  claimed 
half,  the  count  half  2.    Besides  a  provision  for  a  sur- 


'  "  Gif  feoround  man  o'S'Se  fremde  biitan  wege  geond  wudu  gonge, 
and  ne  hifme  nS  hom  blawe,  for  Jjeof  he  bW  to  prdfianne,  o'StJe  to 
sleanne  cS^e  to  alysanne.  Gif  mon  Sees  ofslsegenan  weres  bidde,  he 
mot  gecySan  'Sset  he  hine  for  J>e6f  ofsldge,  nalles  ISses  ofslsegenan  gegil- 
dan  n6  his  hlaford.  Gif  he  hit  Sonne  dyrneS,  and  weorSe'S  ymb  lang 
yppe,  Sonne  rymeS  he  Sam  deadan  to  Sam  aSe,  Sset  hine  moton  his 
mffigas  unscyldigne  gedon."  Ini,  §  20,  21.  The  collocation  of  gegyl- 
dan and  mffigas  in  this  law  seems  to  show  clearly  that  Ini  looked  upon 
them  as  the  same  thing :  hence  that  in  the  original  institution  the  gyld 
and  the  family  were  identical,  though  afterwards,  for  convenience'  sake, 
the  number  and  nature  of  the  gyld  were  otherwise  regulated,  when  the 
kinsmen  had  become  more  dispersed. 

^  "  Gif  mon  sel^eodigne  ofslea,  se  cyning  ah  twEedne  dsel  weres,  ]>ni- 
dan  dtSU  sunu  oSSe  meegas.  Gif  he  Sonne  mtegleas  sie,  healf  cyninge, 
healfsegesiS."    Ini,  §  23. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDEED.  261 

viving  child,  similar  to  that  of  HloShere  S  the  law 
of  Ini  contains  no  further  regulation  with  regard 
to  the  meegas  of  the  freeman.  Four  several  chap- 
ters referring  to  serfs  who  are  guilty  of  theft,  rest 
upon  the  principle  that  his  kin  have  renounced  the 
msegburh  by  suffering  him  to  remain  in  serfage, 
and  together  with  the  obligations  of  kinsman  have 
relinquished  their  own  right  of  avenging  his  injuries 
or  making  pursuit  for  his  wrongs^. 

The  duties  of  the  msegsceaft  or  kinship  are  deve- 
loped with  considerable  detail  in  the  law  of  ^Elfred : 
the  most  general  regulation  is  that  which  acknow- 
ledges the  right  of  a  man  to  have  the  aid  of  his  kin- 
dred in  all  those  excepted  cases  where  the  custom 
and  the  law  still  permitted  the  waging  of  fseh^e  or 
private  war :  "  After  the  same  fashion,  may  a  man 
fight  on  behalf  of  his  born  kinsman,  if  any  wrong- 
fully attack  him ;  except  indeed  against  his  lord : 
that  we  permit  not^."  Other  clauses  provide  that 
where  a  wrongdoer  is  taken  into  custody,  and  agrees 
peaceably  to  abide  the  decision  of  the  law,  his  re- 
latives shall  have  due  notice^ :  "  If  he  pledge  him- 
self to  a  lawful  act,  and  belie  himself  therein,  let 

'  Ini,  §  38. 

-  Ini,  §  24,  28, 85,  74.    Thorpe,  i.  118, 120, 124, 148. 

^  "  .iEfter  ^Eere  ylcan  wisan  mot  men  feohtan  mid  his  geborenum 
msege,  gif  hine  men  on  woh  onfeohta^  ;  Mton  wiS  his  hlaford,  tSset 
we  ne  lyfa«."    ^If.  §  42.     Thorpe,  i.  90. 

*  "  Gif  he  tSonne  tSsss  weddie  Se  him  riht  sf  to  geleestanne  and  Seet 
aledge,  selle  mid  eadm^dum  his  weepn  und  his  aEhta  his  freoudnm  to 
gehealdahne,  and  beo  feowertig  nihta  on  carcerne  on  cyninges  tiine; 
M'owige  ISaer  swa  biscop  him  scrife,  and  his  msegas  hine  ftden  gif  he  self 
mete  nsebbe ;  gif  he  mEegas  nsebbe,  o'SUe  Bone  mete  nsebbe,  fede  cy- 
ninges gertfa  hine."  ^If.  §  1.  Thorpe,  i.  CO.  There  is  a  similar  provi- 
sion in  ^If.  §  5.  Thorpe,  i.  64.     Mil.  §  42.  Thorpe,  i.  90. 


262  THE  SAXOXS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

him  humbly  surrender  his  arms  and  his  goods  to 
his  friends,  to  hold  for  him,  and  let  him  remain  for 
forty  days  in  prison  in  a  king's  tun ;  let  him  there 
suffer  as  the  bishop  may  direct  him ;  and  let  his 
kinsmen  feed  him,  if  he  have  himself  no  food ;  but 
if  he  have  no  kinsmen,  or  no  food,  let  the  king's 
reeve  feed  him."  Again  if  a  man  is  accidentally 
slain  while  hewing  wood  with  others,  his  kinsmen 
are  to  have  the  tree,  and  remove  it  from  the  land 
within  thirty  days,  otherwise  it  shall  go  to  the 
owner  of  the  wood^.  The  most  important  case  of 
all,  however,  is  that  of  a  divided  responsibility  be- 
tween the  kinsmen  and  the  gegyldan,  which  uiElfred 
thus  regulates :  "  If  one  that  hath  no  paternal  kin- 
dred fight  and  slay  a  man,  if  then  he  have  maternal 
relatives,  let  them  pay  a  third  part  of  the  wer,  his 
gyldbrethren  a  third  part,  and  for  a  third  part  let 
him  flee.  If  he  have  no  maternal  relatives,  let  his 
gyldbrethren  pay  half,  and  for  half  let  him  flee. 
And  if  any  one  slay  such  a  man,  having  no  rela- 
tives, let  half  be  paid  to  the  king,  half  to  the  gyld- 
brethren-." It  was  also  the  principle  of  Alfred's 
law,  recognized  but  not  introduced  by  him,  that 
no  man  should  have  the  power  of  alienating  from 
his  msegsceaft,  booklands  whose  flrst  acquirer  had 
entailed  them  upon  the  family, — a  principle  which 


1  M\{.  §  13.     Thorpe,  i.  70. 

'  '•  Gif  fsederemnsega  meegleas  mon  gefeohte  and  inon  ofslea,  and 
^onne  gif  lie  m^drenmiEgas  lisebbe,  gylden  ^a  ISaes  weres  J>riddan  dsel, 
Jjriddan  diel  ^a  gegyldan,  for  friddan  deel  he  fleo.  Gif  he  mSdrenmsBgas 
nage,  gylden  %a,  gegyldan  healfiie,  for  healfhe  he  fleo.  Gif  mon  swa  ge- 
radne  mon  ofslea,  gif  he  mcegas  nage,  gylde  mon  healfhe  cyninge, 
heal&e  «am  gegyldan."  ^Ifr.  §  27,  28.     Thorpe,  i.  78,  80. 


I 


CH. !  X.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  263 

tenjds,  as  far  as  human  means  seem  capable  of  en- 
suring it,  to  ensure  its  permanent  maintenance  i.     - 
The  reciprocal  rights  and  duties  of  the  msegburh 
were  similarly  understood  by  Eadweard  :  he  enacted 
that  if  a  malefactor  were  deserted  by  his  relatives, 
and  they  refused  to  make  compeasation  for  him, 
he  should  be  reduced  to  serfage ;  but  in  this  case 
his  wergyld  was  to  abate  from  the  kindred^.     And 
^Selstan  distinctly  holds   the  mseg'S  responsible 
for  their  kinsman.     He  says,  "  If  a  thief  be  put 
into  prison,  let  him  remain  there  forty  days,  and 
then  let  him  be  ransomed  for  120  shillings,  and  let 
the  kindred  go  surety  for  him  that  he  shall  cease 
from  theft  for  the  future.     And  if  after  that  he 
steal,  let  them  pay  for  him  with  his  wergyld,  or 
replace  him  in  prison^."     But  he  goes  further  than 
this,  and  imposes  upon  them  the  duty  of  finding  a 
lord  for  him,  or  exposing  him  to  the  penalty  of 
outlawry :  "  And  we  have  ordained  respecting  those 
lordless  men  of  whom  no  law  can  be  got,  that  the 
kindred  be  commanded  to  domicile  him  to  folk- 
right,  and  find  him  a  lord  in  the  folkmote ;  and  if 
then  they  will  not  or  cannot  produce  him  at  the 
term,  let  him  thenceforth  be  an  outlaw,  and  let 
whoso  Cometh  at  him  slay  him^:"  a  provision  which 

'  ^Ifr.  §  41.     Thorpe,  i.  88. 

=  Eadw.  ii.  §  9.    jE«elst.  v.  cap.  12,  §  2.    Thorpe,  i.  1 64,  242. 

■>  iESelst.  i.  §  1,  6;  v.  cap.  1,  §  4,  cap.  9.  Thorpe,  i.  198,  202,  228, 
238. 

*  ^«elst.  i.  §  2.  Thorpe,  i.  200.  Upon  the  just  principle  that  "He 
may  die  without  law  who  refuseth  to  live  by  law."  "  Utlagatus  et  wey- 
viata  capita  gerunt  lupina  [wolves'  heads]  quae  ab  omnibus  impune  po- 
terunt  amputari :  merito  enim  sine  lege  perire  debent,  qui  secundum 
legem  vivere  recusant."  Flet.  lib.  i.  cap.  27,  §  12,  etc. 


264  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [bocj  ok  i. 

( 
obviously  cannot   apply  to   free   landowners,  vMio 
would  have  been  included  in  a  tithing,  and  coiwld 
not  have  been  thus  compulsorily  commended  tcJj  a 
lord.   Where  a  man  is  slain  as  a  thief,  the  relati\|es 
are  to  clear  him,  if  they  can^,  inasmuch  as  they 
would  have  a  right  to  pursue  the  slayer  and  claim 
the  compensation  for  their  kinsman's  death.    Again 
it  is  provided  that  if  a  lord  has  so  many  dependents 
that  he  cannot  personally  exercise  a  due  supervision 
over  them,  he  shall  appoint  efficient  reeves  or  bai- 
liffs in  his  several  manors,  to  be  answerable  to  him. 
And  if  need  be,  the  bailiif  shall  cause  twelve  rela- 
tives of  any  man  whom  he  cannot  trust,  to  enter 
into  sureties  for  him  2. 

Eadmund  permitted  the  mseg'S  to  avoid  the  con- 
sequences of  their  kinsman's  act,  by  refusing  to  abet 
him  in  his  feud  ^.  I  imagine  that  this  law  must  be 
taken  in  connection  with  that  of  Eadweard*,  and 
that  it  implies  a  total  desertion  of  the  criminal  by 
his  kindred,  with  all  its  consequences,  viz.  loss  of 
liberty  to  him,  and  of  his  wergyld  to  them.  The 
troubled  time  of  ^'Selred,  "  the  ill-advised,"  sup- 
plies another  attempt  to  secure  peace  by  holding  the 
relatives  strictly  and  personally  responsible :  in  his 
law  we  find  it  enacted,  "  If  breach  of  the  peace  be 


'  ^«elst.  i.  §  11.     Tliorpe,  i.  204. 

^  "  Ut  omnis  homo  teneat  homines  suos  in  fideiuasione  sua  contra 
omne  furtum.  Si  tunc  sit  aliquis  qui  tot  homines  haheat  quod  non  suf- 
ficiat  omnes  custodire,  praeponat  sibi  singulis  viUis  praepositum  unum, 
qui  credibilis  sit  ei,  et  qui  concredat  hominibus.  Et  si  praepositus  ali- 
cui  eoruni  hominum  conoredere  non  audeat,  inveniat  xii  plegios  cogna- 
tionis  suae  qui  ei  stent  in  fideiussione."  vE^elst.  ii.  §  7.  Thorpe,  i,  217. 

'  Eadm.  ii.  §  1.  *  Eadw.  ii.  §  9. 


CH.  IX.]  THE  TITHING  AND  HUNDRED.  265 

committed  within  a  town,  let  the  inhabitants  of  the 
town  go  in  person,  and  take  the  murderers,  alive  or 
dead,  or  their  nearest  of  kin,  head  for  head.  If 
they  will  not,  let  the  ealdorman  go ;  if  he  will  not, 
let  the  king  go ;  if  he  will  not,  let  the  whole  dis- 
trict be  in  a  state  of  war  i."  Though  this  perhaps  is 
less  a  settled  rule  of  law  than  the  convulsive  effort 
of  an  authority  striving  in  vain  to  maintain  itself 
amid  civil  discords  and  the  horrors  of  foreign  in- 
vasion, it  still  consecrates  the  old  principle,  and 
returns  to  the  true  basis  on  which  Anglosaxon 
society  was  founded,  namely  treaties  of  peace  and 
mutual  guarantee  between  the  several  parties  that 
made  up  the  State. 

Such  were  the  means  by  which  the  internal  peace 
of  the  land  was  attempted  to  be  secured,  and  it  is 
evident  that  better  could  hardly  have  been  devised 
in  a  state  of  society  where  population  was  not  very 
widely  dispersed,  and  where  property  hardly  ex- 
isted, save  in  land,  and  almost  equally  unmanage- 
able cattle.  The  summary  jurisdiction  of  our  police 
magistrates,  our  recognizances  and  bail  and  bind- 
ing over  to  keep  the  peace,  are  developments  ren- 
dered necessary  by  our  altered  circumstances ;  but 
these  are  nevertheless  institutions  of  the  same  na- 
ture as  those  on  which  our  forefathers  relied.  The 
establishment  of  our  County-courts,  in  which  jus- 
tice goes  forth  from  man  to  man,  and  without  ori- 
ginal writ  from  the  Crown,  is  another  step  toward 
the  ancient  principle  of  our  jurisprudence,  in  the 
old  Hundred. 

'  MVeh.  ii.  §  6.     Thorpe,  i.  286. 


266  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

A  further  inquiry  now  arises,  as  to  the  basis  upon 
which  all  calculations  as  to  satisfaction  between 
man  and  man  were  founded ;  in  other  words  to  the 
system  of  Wergylds  and  its  various  corollaries: 
this  will  form  the  subject  of  a  separate  chapter. 


267 


CHAPTER  X. 

F^'HDE.    WERGYLD. 

The  right  of  private  warfare,  technically  called  fseh^e 
or  feud  ^,  was  one  which  every  Teutonic  freeman 
considered  inalienable ;  and  which,  coupled  with 
the  obligations  of  family,  was  directly  derived  from 
his  original  position  as  a  freeman  ^  :  it  was  the  pri- 
vilege which  he  possessed  before  he  consented  to 
enter  into  any  political  bond,  the  common  term 
upon  which  all  freemen  could  meet  in  an  equal 
form  of  polity.  It  was  an  immediate  corollary  from 
that  primgeval  law  of  nature,  that  each  man  may 
provide  for  his  own  defence,  and  use  his  own  ener- 
gies to  secure  his  own  well-being,  and  the  quiet 
possession  of  his  life,  his  liberty  and  the  fruits  of 
his  labour.  History  and  tradition  both  assure  us 
that  it  did  exist  among  the  tribes  of  the  North : 
and  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  it  must  have 
done  so,  especially  in  any  case  where  we  can  con- 
ceive separate  families  and  households  to  have  main- 
tained at  all  an  independent  position  toward  one 

'  FEeMe  is  etymologioally  derived  from  fa,  a  foe :  it  is  tlie  state  or 
condition  of  being  fa  witli  any  one.  "  Gif  hwa  ofer  Kset  stalige  sj  he 
fa  wi^  Sone  cyning  and  ealle  his  frednd."  "  If  after  that,  any  one  steal, 
he  he  foe  (at  feud)  with  the  king,  and  all  that  lore  him." 

^  Tacit.  Germ.  xxii. 


268  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

another.  Where  no  imperium  yet  exists,  society  it- 
self possesses  only  a  ius  belli  against  its  own  seve- 
ral members ;  and  if  neighbours  will  not  be  neigh- 
bourly, they  must  be  coerced  into  peace  (the  great 
and  first  need  of  all  society  and  the  condition  of  its 
existence)  by  alliance  of  the  many  against  the  few, 
of  the  orderly  and  peaceful  against  the  violent  and 
lawless.  This  right  of  feud  then  lies  at  the  root 
of  all  Teutonic  legislation ;  and  in  the  Anglosaxon 
law  especially  it  continues  to  be  recognized  long 
after  an  imperial  power  has  been  constituted,  and 
the  general  conservancy  of  the  peace  has  been  com- 
mitted to  a  central  authority.  It  admits  as  its  most 
general  term,  that  each  freeman  is  at  liberty  to  de- 
fend himself,  his  family  and  his  friends  ;  to  avenge 
all  wrongs  done  to  them,  as  to  himself  shall  seem 
good ;  to  sink,  burn,  kill  and  destroy,  as  amply  as 
a  royal  commission  now  authorizes  the  same  in  a 
professional  class,  the  recognized  executors  of  the 
national  will  in  that  behalf.  Now  it  is  obvious 
that  such  a  power,  exercised  in  its  full  extent,  must 
render  the  formation  of  an  orderly  society  difficult, 
if  not  impossible.  The  first  problem  then  is  to  de 
vise  means  by  which  private  vengeance  may  be 
regulated,  private  wrong  atoned,  the  necessity  of 
each  man's  doing  himself  right  avoided,  and  the 
general  state  of  peace  and  security  provided  for. 
For  setting  aside  the  loss  to  the  whole  community 
which  may  arise  from  private  feud,  the  moral  sense 
of  men  may  be  shocked  by  its  results :  an  indivi- 
dual's own  estimate  of  the  satisfaction  necessary 
to  atone  for  the  injury  done  to  him,  may  lead  to 


CH.  X.]  FtE'HDE.    WERGYLD.  269 

the  commission  of  a  wrong  on  his  part,  greater  than 
any  he  hath  suffered ;  nor  can  the  strict  rule  of  "  an 
eye  for  an  eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth,"  be  applied, 
where  the  exaction  of  the  penalty  depends  upon  the 
measure  of  force  between  appellant  and  defender. 

In  the  feeling  then  of  the  omnipotence  of  the 
State,  for  paramount  purposes,  over  all  the  several 
individuals  whose  proximity  to  one  another  neces- 
sarily caused  the  existence  between  them  of  rela- 
tions, amicable  or  hostile,  the  Teutonic  nations  set 
themselves  the  task  of  regulating  the  Bight  of  Feud. 
They  could  not  entirely  abrogate  it,  for  it  was  the 
very  basis  of  that  freedom  which  enabled  every  man 
to  enter  into  a  contract  or  engagement  as  to  the 
mode  of  its  exercise ;  but  they  defined,  and  as  far 
as  possible  limited,  its  sphere  and  the  extent  of  its 
action. 

The  natural  right  of  every  man  to  do  himself 
justice  to  the  extent  of  his  own  estimate^,  seems 
early  to  have  received  so  much  check  as  could  be 
given  by  the  establishment  of  a  lex  talionis, — life 
for  life,  and  limb  for  limb.  The  eorl  who  captured 
the  thane  Imma,  in  the  seventh  century,  could  say 
to  him,  "  I  might  justly  put  thee  to  death,  be- 
cause my  kinsmen  fell  in  the  battle  wherein  thou 


'  This  is  tlie  wild  right  of  every  outlaw,  the  law  of  nature  which  re- 
sumes its  force  when  human  law  has  been  relinquished. 
"  I  lost  mine  eye  in  laying  the  prize  aboard, 
And  therefore,  to  revenge  it,  shalt  thou  die!  " 

Hen.  VI.  Part  2,  act  iv.  sc.  1. 
Such  is  the  justice  of  him  who  has  returned  to  the  universal  state  of 
war.   Against  such  a  one,  Society,  if  it  mean  to  be  society,  must  on  its 
side  declai'e  a  war  of  extermination. 


270  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

wert  made  prisoner i;"  and  this  principle  was  re- 
cognized even  in  the  later  legislation,  after  what 
we  may  call  a  legal  commutation  of  this  right  had 
been  established :  the  ordinance  respecting  oaths 
to  be  administered  says,  "  A  twelfhynde  man's 
oath  stands  for  six  ceorls'  oaths ;  because  if  a  man 
should  avenge  a  twelfhynde  man,  he  will  be  fully 
avenged  on  six  ceorls,  and  his  wergyld  will  be  six 
ceorls'  wergylds^."  The  Teutonic  nations  generally 
avoided  the  inconveniences  of  such  a  system  by 
making  the  State  itself  the  arbitrator  between  the 
parties  ;  that  is,  by  establishing  a  tariff  at  which  in- 
juries should  be  rated,  and  committing  to  the  State 
the  duty  of  compelling  the  injured  person  to  receive, 
and  the  wrongdoer  to  pay,  the  settled  amount.  It 
thus  engaged  to  act  as  a  mediator  between  the 
conflicting  interests,  with  a  view  to  the  maintenance 
of  the  general  peace :  it  assured  to  the  sufferer  the 
legal  satisfaction  for  his  loss;  it  engaged  to  his 
adversary  that,  upon  due  payment  of  that  legal 
satisfaction,  he  should  be  placed  under  the  public 
guarantee  and  saved  from  all  the  consequences  of 
feud.  For  doing  this,  the  State  claimed  also  some 
remuneration ;  it  imposed  a  fine,  called  sometimes 
fredum,  from  friS,  peace,  or  iannum  from  its  pro- 
clamation (bannan)^,  over  and  above  the  compen- 

'  Beda,  Hist.  Eccl.  iv.  22. 

^  "  Twelf  hyndes  mannea  alS  forstent  syx  ceorla  a« ;  for^am  gif  man 
Sone  twelf hyndan  man  wrecan  sceolde,  lie  hi'S  full  wrecen  on  syx  ceor- 
lum,  and  his  wergyld  HIS  syx  ceorla  wergyld."  Oaths,  §  12.  THorpe, 
i.  182. 

'  The  technical  term  is,  to  set  up  the  king's  protection,  "  cyningea 
munde  r^ran."   Eadw.  and  GutS.  §  13.    Eadm.  ii.  §  7.    Thorpe,  i.  174 


CH.x.]  F^'HDE,    WERGYLD.  271 

sation  between  man  and  man.  And  this  is  obvi- 
ously what  Tacitus  means  when  he  says^,  "They  are 
bound  to  take  up  both  the  enmities  and  the  friend- 
ships of  a  father  or  relative.  Nor  are  their  enmi- 
ties implacable ;  for  even  homicide  is  atoned  for  by 
a  settled  number  of  flocks  or  cattle,  and  the  whole 
house  receives  satisfaction, — a  useful  thing  for  the 
state,  for  feuds  are  dangerous  in  exact  proportion 
to  freedom."  And  again,  "  A  portion  of  the  fine 
goes  to  the  king  or  state,  a  part  to  him  whose  da- 
mages are  to  be  assessed,  or  to  his  relatives."  Only 
where  the  State  would  not,  or  could  not,  as  may 
sometimes  have  happened,  undertake  this  duty,  did 
the  right  of  private  warfare  again  resume  its  course, 
and  the  family  relations  recover  their  pristine  im- 
portance. The  man  who  presumes  to  fight,  before 
he  has  in  vain  appealed  to  all  the  recognized  au- 
thorities for  redress,  is  liable,  under  Alfred's  law, 
to  severe  punishment,  except  in  one  important 
case,  which  involved  the  maintenance  of  the  family 
itself,  to  secure  which  alone  the  machinery  of  the 
State  exists^.     But  where  the  off'ender  refuses  to 

250.  This  is  tlie  engagement  of  the  State  that  the  arbitrament  shall 
be  peaceably  made,  and  it  at  once  abrogates  all  right  of  feud,  and  fear 
of  violent  revenge. 

'  "  Suscipere  tam  inimicitias  sen  patris  seu  propinqui  quam  amici- 
tias  necesse  est.  Nee  implacabiles  durant ;  luitur  enim  etiam  homici- 
dium  certo  armentorum  ac  pecorum  numero,  recipitque  satisfaotionem 
universa  domus  :  utiliter  in  publicum  ;  quia  periculosiores  sunt  inimi- 
citiae  iuxta  libertatem."  Germ.  xxii.  "  Sed  et  levioribus  delictis  [in- 
cluding homicide]  pro  modo  poenarum  equorum  pecorumque  numero 
convicti  multantur.  Pars  multae  regi  vel  civitati,  pars  ipsi  qui  vindi- 
catur,  vel  propinquis  eius  exsolvitur."  Ibid.  xii. 

^  The  Saxon  law  says,  in  accordance  with  the  universal  law  of  na- 
ture and  society,  "  A  man  may  fight,  without  incurring  the  penalty  of 


272  THE  SAXOIsS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

avail  himself  of  the  means  of  peaceful  settlement 
which  society  has  provided  for  him,  the  person  in- 
jured may  make  war  upon  him,  and  have  the  assist- 
ance of  the  State  in  so  doing.     The  most  general 
expression  of  this  right  is  found  in  a  proverbial 
formula  retained  in  the  law  of  Eadweard  the  Con- 
fessor, and  which  may  be  said  to  comprise  all  the 
law  of  the  subject :  it  says,  "  Let  amends  be  made 
to  the  kindred,  or  let  their  war  be  borne ;  "  whence 
the  English  had  the  proverb,  '  Bicge  spere  of  side 
6'Ser  here,'  that  is  to  say,  B^^y  off  the  spear  or  hear 
it^.     The  mode  however  of  applying  this  general 
right  was  not  left  to  individual  caprice.     The  fol- 
lowing regulations  made  by  successive  kings  will 
explain  very  fully  the  practice  and  the  theory  of 
Feud  or  War.    Alfred  ordains,  "  That  the  man  who 
knows  his  foe   to  be  homesitting   fight  not,  be- 
fore he  have  demanded  justice  of  him.     If  he  have 
power  enough  to  beset  his  foe,  and  besiege  him  in 
his  house,  let  him  keep  him  there  for  seven  days,  but 
not  attack  him,  if  he  will  remain  within-doors.     If 
then,  after  seven  days,  he  be  willing  to  surrender, 
and  to  give  up  his  weapons,  let  him  be  kept  safe 
for  thirty  days,  and  let  notice   of  him  be  given 
to  his  kinsmen  and  friends.  .  .  .  But  if  the  plaintiff 


raising  -war,  against  him  wliom  he  finds  with  his  wedded  wife,  within 
closed  doors,  or  under  one  covering ;  or,  with  his  daughter  lawfully 
born,  or  with  his  sister  lawfully  born,  or  with  his  mother,  who  was 
given  to  his  father  as  his  wedded  wife."  In  these  cases  there  is,  and 
can  be,  no  murder  before  the  law.  It  is  needless  to  show  from  the 
history  and  traditions  of  every  European  state,  that  this  is  a  principle 
universally  recognized. 

'  Leg.  Eadw.  Oonf.  xii.     Thorpe,  i.  447. 


CH.  X.]  F^'HRE.    WERGYLD,  273 

have  not  power  enough  of  his  own  to  besiege  his 
foeman,  let  him  ride  to  the  ealdorman  and  beg  aid 
of  him :  and  if  the  ealdorman  will  not  aid  him,  let 
him  ride  to  the  king  before  he  fights.  In  like  man- 
ner if  a  man  come  accidentally  upon  his  foe,  and 
without  previous  knowledge  of  his  homestaying ;  if 
the  foe  wiU  surrender  his  weapons,  let  him  be  kept 
safely  for  thirty  days,  and  let  notice  be  given  to  his 
friends.  If  he  will  not  surrender  his  weapons,  he 
may  lawfully  be  attacked.  But  if  he  be  willing  to 
surrender  and  to  deliver  up  his  weapons,  and  after 
that,  any  one  attack  him,  let  him  pay  wer  and 
wound,  as  well  he  may,  and  fine,  and  have  forfeited 
his  maegship  i.  We  also  declare  that  it  is  lawful 
war,  for  a  man  to  fight  for  his  lord,  if  any  one 
attack  his  lord :  and  so  also  may  the  lord  fight  for 
his  man.  And  in  like  manner  a  man  may  fight 
for  his  born  kinsman,  if  any  wrongfully  attack 
him,  except  against  his  own  lord  :  that  we  allow 
not.  And  it  is  lawful  war  if  a  man  find  another 
with  his  wedded  wife  within  closed  doors,  or  under 
one  covering,  or  with  his  daughter  born  in  wedlock, 
or  his  sister  born  in  wedlock,  or  his  mother  who 
was  given  to  his  father  as  a  wedded  wife  ^." 

The   inconveniences  of  this  state  of  society  in- 
duced Eadmund,  about  the  middle  of  the  tenth  cen- 

'  Probably^  "  Let  him  forfeit  all  claim  to  tlie  assistance  of  bis  kins- 
men, eitber  in  repelling  feud  or  paying  fine." 

^  ^Ifr.  §  42.  I  bave  sligbtly  varied  tbe  form  of  expression  in  tbe 
last  sentences,  on  account  of  tbe  difiiculty  of  rendering  tbe  adjective 
orwige.  Alfred  says  in  tbese  cases  a  man  may  figbt  orwige,  literally, 
without  incurring  the  guilt  of  making  war,  witbout  becoming  obnoxious 
to  tbe  penalties  assigned  to  tbe  crime  of  war-raising. 

VOL.  I.  T 


274  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

tury,  to  release  the  kindred  from  the  consequences 
of  fseh'Se  :  he  thus  commences  his  secular  laws : 

"Eadmund  the  king  makes  known  to  all  the 
people,  old  and  young,  that  are  in  his  dominion, 
what  I  have  deliberated  with  the  counsel  of  my 
Witan,  both  ordained  and  laic.  First  how  I  might 
best  promote  Christianity.  Then  seemed  it  to  us 
first  most  needful  that  we  should  most  firmly  pre- 
serve peace  and  harmony  among  ourselves,  through- 
out all  my  dominion.  Both  I,  and  all  of  us,  hold 
in  horror  the  unrighteous  and  manifold  fightings 
that  exist  among  ourselves  :  we  have  therefore  de- 
creed :  If  henceforth  any  one  slay  another,  let  him 
bear  the  feud  himself,  unless  by  the  assistance  of 
his  friends,  and  within  twelve  months,  he  make 
amends  with  the  full  wer,  be  he  born  as  he  may. 
But  if  his  kindred  forsake  him,  and  will  not  pay  for 
him,  it  is  my  will  that  all  the  kindred  be  tmfdh  [out 
of  feud]  except  the  actual  perpetrator;  provided 
that  they  do  not  give  him  either  food  or  protection. 
But  if  afterwards  any  of  the  kindred  harbour  him, 
he  shall  be  liable  in  all  that  he  possesses  to  the 
king^  and  bear  the  feud  with  the  kindred,  because 
they  had  previously  forsaken  him.  But  if  any  of 
the  other  kindred  take  vengeance  upon  any  man 
save  the  actual  perpetrator,  let  him  be  foe  to  the 
king  and  all  his  friends,  and  forfeit  all  that  he 
has2." 


'  A  forfeiture  of  this  kind  ia  recorded  in  the  Codex  Diplomaticus, 
Nos.  714,  719,  1304.  A  lady  had  harboured  her  brother,  while  an  out- 
law for  murder.    Her  lands  were  all  forfeited  and  given  to  the  king. 

'  Eadtn.  Sec.  Leg.  §  1.    Thorpe,  i.  246. 


CH.  X.]  F^'HDE.    WEEGYLD.  275 

It  is  probable  that  this  right  thus  reserved  to  the 
kindred  of  deserting  their  guilty  kinsman,  was  not 
often  exercised,  nevertheless  the  subsequent  laws 
of  ^'Selred  and  Cnut  ^  may  be  considered  to  have 
been  understood  in  connexion  with  it,  and  subject 
to  its  limitations. 

The  law  of  Eadweard  the  elder  (about  a.d.  900  to 
915),  regulates  the  mode  of  proceeding  when  both 
parties  are  willing  to  forego  the  feud,  upon  the  esta- 
blished principles  of  compensation.  He  says^:  "The 
wergyld  of  a  twelfhynde  man  is  twelve  himdred 
shillings.  The  wergyld  of  a  twyhynde  man  is  two 
hundred  shillings.  If  any  one  be  slain,  let  him  be 
paid  for  according  to  his  birth.  And  it  is  the  law, 
that,  after  the  slayer  has  given  pledge  for  the  wer- 
gyld, he  should  find  in  addition  a  werborh,  accord- 
ing to  the  circumstances  of  the  case ;  that  is,  for 
the  wergyld  of  a  twelfhynde  man,  the  werborh 
must  consist  of  twelve  men,  eight  by  the  father's, 
four  by  the  mother's  side.  When  that  is  done, 
let  the  king's  protection  be  set  up  ;  that  is,  all,  of 
either  kindred,  laying  their  hands  together  upon  one 
weapon,  shall  pledge  themselves  to  the  mediator, 
that  the  king's  protection  shall  stand.  In  twenty- 
one  days  from  that  day  let  one  hundred  and  twenty 
shillings  be  paid  as  Jiealsfang,  at  a  twelfhynde  man's 
wergyld.  The  healsfang  belongs  to  the  children, 
brothers  and  paternal  uncles :  that  money  belongs 
to  no  kinsman  except  such  as  are  within  the  de- 
grees of  blood.    Twenty-one  days  after  the  healsfang 

^  See  above,  cap.  ix.  p..  264. 

^  Ead.  and  GuS.  §  13.     Thorpe,  i.  174. 

T  2 


276  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

is  paid,  let  the  manbot  be  paid;  twenty-one  days 
later,  th.e  fight-fine ;  in  twenty-one  days  from  this, 
\h.e  frumgyld  or  first  instalment  of  the  wergyld;  and 
so  forth  until  the  whole  sum  be  discharged  at  such 
fixed  time  as  the  Witan  have  agreed.  After  this 
they  may  depart  with  love,  if  they  desire  to  have 
full  friendship.  And  with  respect  to  the  wergyld 
of  a  ceorl,  all  that  belongs  in  his  condition  shall  be 
done  in  like  manner  as  we  have  said  respecting  the 
twelfhynde  man." 

The  lawof  Eadmund  contains  similar  provisions  i. 
"  The  Witan  shall  appease  feud.  First,  according 
to  folkright,  the  slayer  shall  give  pledge  to  his  ad- 
vocate, and  the  advocate  to  the  kindred  of  the  slain, 
that  the  slayer  will  make  compensation  to  the  kin. 
Then  it  is  necessary  that  security  be  given  to  the 
slayer's  advocate,  that  the  slayer  may  draw  nigh  in 
peace,  and  himself  give  pledge  for  the  wergyld. 
When  he  has  given  his  wed  for  this,  let  him  further 
find  a  werborh,  or  security  for  the  payment  of  the 
wer.  When  that  is  done  let  the  king's  protection 
be  set  up :  within  twenty-one  days  from  that,  let  the 
healsfang  be  paid;  within  other  twenty-one  dasy, 
the  manbot ;  and  twenty-one  days  from  that,  the 
first  instalment  of  the  wergyld." 

The  wergyld  then,  or  life-price,  was  the  basis 
upon  which  all  peaceful  settlement  of  feud  was 
established.  A  sum  paid  either  in  kind  or  in 
money,  where  money  existed,  was  placed  upon  the 
life  of  every  free  man,  according  to  his  rank  in  the 

'  Eadm.  Sec.  Leg.  §  7.     Tkorpe,  i.  250. 


CH.  X.]  FtE'HDE.    WEEGYLD.  277 

state,  his  birth  or  his  office.  A  corresponding  sum 
was  settled  for  every  wound  that  could  be  inflicted 
upon  his  person ;  for  nearly  every  injury  that  could 
be  done  to  his  civil  rights,  his  honour  or  his  do- 
mestic peace ;  and  further  fines  were  appointed  ac- 
cording to  the  peculiar,  adventitious  circumstances 
that  might  appear  to  aggravate  or  extenuate  the 
ofience.  From  the  operation  of  this  principle  no 
one  was  exempt,  and  the  king  as  well  as  the  pea- 
sant was  protected  by  a  wergyld,  payable  to  his 
kinsmen  and  his  people.  The  diff"erence  of  the  wer- 
gyld is  the  principal  distinction  between  difierent 
classes ;  it  defined  the  value  of  each  man's  oath, 
his  mund  or  protection,  and  the  amount  of  his  fines 
or  his  exactions:  and,  as  we  have  already  seen^,  it 
regulated  the  equivalent  for  his  value.  And  as  it 
is  obvious  that  the  simple  wergyld  of  the  free  man 
is  the  original  unit  in  the  computation,  we  have  a 
strong  argument,  were  any  needed,  that  that  class 
formed  the  real  basis  and  original  foundation  of  all 
Teutonic  society. 

Although  this  principle  was  common  to  all  the 
Germanic  tribes,  very  great  variety  exists  in  the 
amounts  severally  adopted  to  represent  the  value  of 
different  ranks, — a  variety  easily  understood  when 
we  reflect  upon  the  relative  condition  of  those  tribes 
at  the  period  when  this  portion  of  their  law  was 
first  settled.  A  slight  account  of  them  will  be  use- 
ful, as  an  introduction  to  the  consideration  of  our 
Anglosaxon  values.    It  will  be  seen  throughout  that 

'  See  above,  p.  275. 


278  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

various  circumstances   have    tended    to   introduce 
changes  into  the  early  and  simple  order  i. 

Salian  Franks, — Ingenuus,  200  sol. :  litus,  100 
sol. :  ingenuus  in  hoste  600  :  litus  in  hoste,  300  sol. : 
ingenuus  in  truste  1800 :  litus  in  truste,  900  sol. 

Thus  if  engaged  in  actual  warfare,  the  value  of 
the  freeman  and  the  emancipated  serf  was  tripled ; 
and  if  in  the  trust  or  immediate  service  of  the  king, 
their  respective  values  were  multiplied  nine  times. 
It  is  probable  that  the  Ripuarian  Franks  adopted 
the  same  numbers. 

Angli  et  Werini. — Liber  200  sol. :  adaling  (no- 
ble) 600  :  libertus  (freedman)  80  sol. 

Law  of  the  Saxons. — Probably,  the  freeman  240 
shillings :  noble  1440  :  freedman  120  shillings. 

Law  of  the  Bavarians. — The  duke  960  shillings: 
the  ducal  family  of  the  Agilolfings,  640  :  the  other 
five  noble  races,  320  shillings :  the  simple  free  man 
160  shillings. 

Law  of  the  Alamanni. — Primus  (the  first  rank  of 
the  nobles)  240  shillings :  medianus  (the  second 
rank  of  nobles)  200  :  minofiedus  (the  free  man) 
160. 

Law  of  the  Burgundians. — Noble  300  shillings : 
lower  noble  (mediocris)  200  :  freeman  (minor)  150. 

Law  of  the  Frisians. — Noble  80  shillings :  free- 
man 53-J ;  freedman  26f  shillings. 

Law  of  the  Visigoths. — Freeman  (between  the 
years  of  twenty  and  fifty)  300  shillings :  freedman 
150. 

'  The  following  numbers  are  taken  from  Grimm,  Rechtsalt.  p.  272. 


CH.  X.]  F.E'HDE.    WBRGYLD,  279 

In  the  North,  100  silfrs  was  the  wergyld  of  the 
freeman,  and  there  is  no  account  of  the  jarl's.  The 
Old  Swedish  laws  genei'ally  assign  40  marks  ;  this 
is  the  reckoning  of  the  Upland,  Sudermanland, 
and  Eastgothland  laws.  The  Westgothland  law  has 
39  marks ;  the  Jutish  54 ;  and  the  Gutalag,  three 
marks  of  gold. 

The  wergyld  of  the  clergy  is  slightly  different : 
among  the  Salic  Franks,  deacon  300,  priest  600, 
bishop  900  shillings.  A  late  addition  to  the  Ei- 
puarian  law  computes, — clericus  200,  subdeacon 
400,  deacon  500,  priest  600,  bishop  900. 

This  is  sufficient  to  give  a  general  outline  of  the 
system  :  it  will  be  observed  that  these  continental 
computations  give  no  reckoning  for  the  king.  Be- 
yond doubt  they  were  for  the  most  part  settled  after 
the  royal  power  had  become  so  fully  developed  as 
to  cast  aside  all  traces  of  its  original  character  and 
nature. 

The  Anglosaxon  equivalents  for  these  computa- 
tions are  by  no  means  clear ;  nor,  as  far  as  we  can 
judge,  are  they  altogether  consistent.  It  is  probable 
that  they  varied  not  only  in  the  several  Anglosaxon 
kingdoms,  but  were  also  subject  to  change  at  va- 
rious periods,  as  the  relative  value  of  life  and  pro- 
duce altered.  The  Kentish  law  which  names  only 
the  eorl  and  ceorl,  as  the  two  classes  of  free  men, 
does  not  give  us  the  exact  amount  of  their  wer- 
gylds,  but  it  supplies  us  with  some  data  by  which 
perhaps  an  approximation  may  be  made  to  it.  In 
iE'Selberht's  law  (§  2,  5,  8)  the  king's  mundhyrd 
or  protection  is  valued  at  fifty  shillings,  the  eorl's 


280  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

or  noble's  at  twelve  (§  13, 14,  compared  with  §  10, 
15,  16,  17),  and  the  ceorl's  or  simple  freeman's  at 
six  (§  15,  25,  88).  Thus  the  three  classes  stand  in 
the  relation  of  fifty,  twelve  and  six ;  or  taking  the 
ceorl  as  unity,  their  respective  values  are  8^,  2  and 
1 :  that  is. 


Ceorl 

eorl   : 

:  1  :  2. 

Ceorl 

king  : 

■  1--H 

Eorl 

king.: 

:l:4i 

Now  the  medume  leodgeld  of  the  ceorl  is  stated  to 
be  one  hundred  shillings  (§  7),  and  if  Grimm  and 
Thorpe  were  right  in  translating  this  the  half  wer- 
gyld,  we  should  have  the  very  improbable  sums  of 
200,  400  and  1666f  Kentish  shillings.  Meduma 
however  does  not  signify  half,  but  middling,  mode- 
rate: the  enactment  in  ^"Selberht's  law  amounts 
in  fact  to  this:  If  a  man  slay  another,  he  is  to 
pay  his  wergyld ;  but  not  so,  if  the  slayer  happen 
to  be  the  king's  armourer  or  messenger ;  in  that 
case  he  is  to  pay  only  a  moderated  wergyld  of  one 
hundred  shillings.  It  was  an  exemption  in  favour 
of  two  most  important  officers  of  the  royal  house- 
hold; and  shows  partly  the  growing  encroach- 
ment of  prerogative,  partly  the  value  set  upon  the 
talents  of  the  officers  themselves^.  The  common 
wergyld  then  was  above  one  hundred,  and  I  think 
it  can  be  shown  that  it  was  below  -two  hundred, 
shillings.     The  case  of  a  wergyld  paid  for  a  king, 


^  The  royal  messengers  were  often  of  tie  highest  rank.  The  heroic 
character  of  the  weapon-smith  or  armourer  appears  throughout  the 
traditions  of  the  North,  and  indeed  in  the  epic  poetry  of  all  nations. 


CH.  X.]  F^'HDE.     WERGYLD.  281 

though  rare,  is  by  no  means  unexampled^.  In 
the  year  687,  Mul  ^^elweard,  a  scion  of  the  royal 
race  of  Wessex,  invaded  Kent,  and  having  incau- 
tiously suffered  himself  to  be  surprised  by  the 
country-people,  was  burnt  to  death  in  a  house  where 
he  had  taken  refuge  with  a  few  comrades.  Seven 
years  later  the  men  of  Kent  made  compensation  to 
Ini  for  Mil's  death.  The  sum  given  is  very  vari- 
ously stated.  William  of  Malmesbury  says  it  was 
thirty  thousand  mancuses^;  which,  calculated  at 
eight  mancuses  to  the  pound,  would  be  three  thou- 
sand, seven  hundred  and  fifty  pounds,  and  this 
is  the  sum  mentioned  by  Florence  of  Worcester  ^. 
vE'Selweard,  the  oldest  Latin  chronicler,  but  still 
removed  four  centuries  from  the  time,  makes  it 
amount  to  thirty  thousand  solidi  or  shillings,  each 
of  which  is  to  be  calculated  at  sixteen  pence^.  Some 
manuscripts  of  the  Saxon  Chronicle  read  thirty 
thousand  pounds^,  "  Jjrittig  Jjusend  punda," — others, 

^  In  tlie  year  679  a  battle  was  fouglit  between  Ecgfri^  of  Nortbum- 
berland  and  ^ISilrsed  of  Meroia.  "Anno  regis  Ecgfridi  nono,  conserto 
gravi  praelio  inter  ipsum  et  AedUreduni  regem  Merciorum,  iuxta  flu- 
vium  Treanta,  occisus  est  Aelfuini,  frater  regis  Ecgfridi,  iuvenis  circiter 
decern  et  octo  annorum,  utrique  provinciae  multum  amabilis.  Nam  et 
sOTorem  eius  quae  dicebatur  Os'Sryd,  rex  Aedilred  habebat  uxorem. 
Cumque  materies  belli  acrioris  et  inimicitiae  longioris  inter  reges  po- 
pulosque  feroces  videretur  exorta,  Tbeodorus,  deo  dilectus  autistes, 
divino  functus  auxilio,  salutifera  exbortatione  coeptuni  tanti  periculi 
ftinditus  exstinguit  incendium  :  adeo  ut  paoatis  alterutrum  regibus  ac 
populis,  nullius  anima  hominis  pro  interfecto  regis  fratre,  sed  debita 
solummodo  muUa  pecuniae  regi  ultori  daretur.  Cuius  foedera  pacis 
multo  exinde  tempore  inter  eosdem  reges  eorumque  regna  durarunt. 
In  praefato  autem  praelio,  quo  occisus  est  Rex  Aelfuini,"  etc.  Beda, 
H.  Eccl.  iv.  21,  22. 

=  Will.  Malm.  Gest.  Reg.  lib.  i.  ^  -piay:.  Wigorn.  an.  694. 

*  jmA-w.  Chron.  ii.  cap.  10.  ^  Ohron.  Saxon,  an.  694. 


282  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

thirty  pounds,  "  Jjrittig  punda."    Now  however  con- 
tradictory all  these  statements  may  at  first'  sight 
appear  (and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  some  of  them 
are  ridiculously  exaggerated),  it  is  not  impossible 
to  reconcile  and  explain  them.     Every  one  of  the 
authorities  I  have  cited,  except  Florence,  who  has 
evidently  calculated  his  sum  upon  what  he  believed 
to  be  the  value  of  the  mancus,  reads  thirty  thousand 
of  some  coin  or  other.    One  will  have  them  pounds, 
another   shillings,   another    mancuses,    etc.      Now 
they  are  all  wrong  in  their  denomination,  and  all 
equally  right  in  their  number ;  and  for  this  very 
obvious  reason, — the  originals  from  which  they  de- 
rived their  information  did  mention  the  number, 
and  did  not  mention  the  denomination.     Each  au- 
thor put  the  question  to  himself,  "  Thirty  thousand 
what  ?  "  and  answered  it  by  supplying  the  supposed 
omission  with  the  coin  most  familiar  to  himself. 
But  there  cannot  be  the  least  doubt  that  the  Saxon 
original  read  J^rittig  J)usenda,  thirty  thousand,  and 
nothing  else ;  and  this  is  not  only  actually  the  read- 
ing of  some  MSS.  of  the  Chronicle,  but  most  likely 
the  cause  of  the  error  which  lies  in  the  other  copies, 
incautious  transcribers  having  been  misled  by  the 
resemblance  between  the  Saxon  ]>  and^,  and  mis- 
taken the  contraction  Jirittig  Jjunda  for  Jjrittig  pun- 
da,  thirty  pounds.     It  is  the  custom  of  the  Anglo- 
saxon  tongue,  in  describing  measures  of  land  or 
sums  of  money,  to  use  the  numerals  only,  leaving 
the  commonest  units  to  be  supplied  by  the  reader. 
Thus  if  land  were  intended,  thirty  thousand  would 
denote  that  number  of  hides ;  and  w'here  money  is 


CH.  X.]  FiE'HDE.    WERGYLD.  283 

intended,  at  least  in  Kent,  thirty  thousand  sccets'^. 
This  then  I  believe  to  have  been  the  sum  paid  to 
Ini,  and  the  regular  personal  wergyld  of  a  Kentish 
king.     Let  us  now  apply  this  sum  to  elucidate  the 
value  of  the  other  Kentish  wergylds.    From  a  com- 
parison of    the    compensation    appointed   for   in- 
juries done  to  the  nails  of  the  fingers  and  toes,  Mr. 
Thorpe,  the  late  Mr.  Allen,  and  I  concluded  that 
the  value  of  a  Kentish  shilling  was  twenty  scsets. 
But  thirty  thousand  scsets  would  be  fifteen  hundred 
such  shillings,  and  assuming  this  to  be  the  royal 
wergyld,  we  shall  find  the  eorl's  to   be  360,  the 
ceorl's  180  shillings,   which   amounts   are  exactly 
thirty  times  the  value  of  the  several  mundbyrds  ^. 
In  the  first  volume  of  Mr.  Thorpe's  Anglosaxon 
Laws,   at  p.  186,  there  is  a  document  which  pro- 
fesses to  give    the  values   of   difi"erent  classes   in 
Northumberland.     Its  date  is  uncertain,  though  it 
appears  to  have  been  generally  assigned  to  the  com- 
mencement of  the  tenth  century.     I  confess  that  I 
can  hardly  reconcile  myself  to  so  early  a  date,  and 
think  it  altogether  a  suspicious  authority.     It  tells 
us  as  follows : 

"  1.  The  Northpeople's  royal  gyld  is  thirty  thou- 
sand thrymsas ;  fifteen  thousand  thrymsas  are  for 
the  wergyld,  and  fifteen  thousand  for  the  royal  dig- 

'  Conf.  Leg.  Hlo«h.  §  13.  ^«elr.  §  7.  Alfred's  Beda,  iii.  5.  So,  an 
Mtig,  one  fifty,  means  iftj2}salms  to  be  sung  or  said.  iESelst.  iv.  §  3. 
V.  8.  §  6.  No  one  mistakes  the  meaning  oi  five  hundred,  five  thousand 
a  year. 

^  1500  Kentish  sliillings,  which  are  equivalent  to  rather  more  than 
7800  Saxon  shillings,  were  a  sufficient  sum,  at  a  period  when  an  ewe 
with  her  lamb  was  worth  only  one  Saxon  shilling.  Leg.  Ini,  §  55. 


284  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

nity.  The  wer  belongs  to  the  kindred ;  the  cynebot 
to  the  people. 

"  2.  An  archbishop's  and  an  se'Seling's  wergyld 
is  fifteen  thousand  thrymsas. 

"  3.  A  bishop's  and  an  ealdorman's,  eight  thou- 
sand thi^msas. 

"  4.  A  hold's  and  a  king's  high  reeve's,  four 
thousand  thrymsas. 

"  5.  A  mass  thane's  and  a  secular  thane's,  two 
thousand  thrymsas. 

"  6.  A  ceorl's  wergyld  is  two  hundred  and  sixty- 
six  thrymsas,  that  is  two  hundred  shillings  by  Mer- 
cian law. 

"  7.  And  if  a  Welshman  thrive  so  well  that  he 
have  a  hide  of  land,  and  can  bring  forth  the  king's 
tax,  then  is  his  wergyld  one  hundred  and  twenty 
shillings ;  and  if  he  thrive  not  save  to  half  a  hide, 
then  let  his  wer  be  eighty  shillings. 

"  8.  And  if  he  have  not  any  land,  but  yet  is  free, 
let  him  be  paid  for  with  seventy  shillings. 

"9.  And  if  a  ceorlish  man  thrive  so  well  that 
he  have  five  hides  of  land  for  the  king's  utware, 
and  any  one  slay  him,  let  him  be  paid  for  with  two 
thousand  thrymsas. 

"  10.  And  though  he  thrive  so  that  he  have  a 
helm  and  coat-of-mail,  and  a  sword  ornamented 
with  gold,  if  he  have  not  that  land,  he  is  notwith- 
standing a  ceorl. 

"  11.  And  if  his  son  and  his  son's  son  so  thrive 
that  they  have  so  much  land  after  him,  the  off"- 
spring  shall  be  of  gesi^cund  [noble]  race  at  two 
thousand. 


CH.  X.]  F.E'HDE.    WERGYLD.  285 

"  12.  And  if  they  have  not  that,  nor  to  that 
amount  can  thrive,  let  them  be  paid  for  as  ceorl- 
ish." 

Another,  and  perhaps  more  trustworthy  docu- 
ment, printed  at  p.  190  of  the  same  volume,  gives 
us  the  following  values  as  current  in  Mercia. 

"A  ceorl's  wergyld  is  by  Mercian  law,  two  hun- 
dred shillings.  A  thane's  wergyld  is  six  times  as 
much,  that  is,  twelve  hundred  shillings.  Then  is 
a  king's  simple  wergyld,  six  thanes'  wer  by  Mer- 
cian law,  that  is  thirty  thousand  sceats  and  that  is 
altogether  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds.  So 
much  is  the  wergyld  in  the  folkright  by  Mercian 
law.  And  for  the  royal  dignity  such  another  sum 
is  due,  as  compensation  for  cynegyld.  The  wer  be- 
longs to  the  kindred,  the  cynebot  to  the  people." 

A  passage  already  cited  in  this  chapter  gives  the 
wergylds  of  the  freeman  and  noble  in  Wessex  as 
respectively  two  hundred  and  twelve  hundred  scil- 
lingas,  whence  those  classes  are  called  twyhynde 
and  twelfhynde :  these  denominations  correspond 
to  the  old  and  usual  ceorl  and  eorl;  and  as  the 
original  expression  for  all  classes  of  society  was, 
be  it  churl,  be  it  earl,  Cnut  could  use  as  perfectly 
equivalent,  be  it  twyhynde,  be  it  twelfhynde ^.  But 
in  Wessex  a  third  class  is  mentioned,  whose  wer- 
gyld was  half  that  of  the  twelfhynde,  and  three 
times  that  of  the  ceorl :  they  are  called  sixhynde, 
men  of  six  hundred.      It  is  diiRcult  to  say  whether 

'  "  Swa  eac  we  setta'5  be  eallum  hadum  ge  ceorle  ge  eorle."  ^If. 
§  4.  "  Cnut  cing  griSt ....  ealle  mine  Jjsgnast  welfhynde  and  twyhynde 
freondHce."  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  731. 


286 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


[book  : 


they  are  the  original  nobles,  three  times  as  valuable 
as  the  freeman,  and  whether  the  twelfhynde  are 
an  exclusive  class  of  magnates,  raised  above  them 
during  the  progressive  development  of  the  royal 
povper ;  or  whether,  on  the  contrary,  the  twelfhynde 
and  twyhynde  are  the  original  divisions,  and  the  six- 
hynde  a  middle  class  of  ministerials,  which  sprang 
up  when  ceorls  had  entered  the  service  of  the  crown, 
and  thus  became  raised  above  their  fellovs^  freemen. 
I  incline  to  the  latter  opinion,  partly  from  the  ap- 
parent absence  of  this  sixhynde  class  in  Mercia, 
partly  from  the  apposition  noticed  above,  and  the 
omission  of  the  sixhynde  altogether  from  the  pas- 
sage in  Eadweard's  law,  which  regulates  the  pay- 
ments for  the  other  two  classes.  There  is  no  state- 
ment of  a  royal  wergyld  in  Wessex,  but  from  what 
has  been  said  of  the  composition  made  for  Mul,  it 
may  be  inferred  that  it  was  thirty  thousand  sceattas 
or  120  pounds,  like  that  of  Mercia.  The  total  in- 
consistency of  these  several  values  will  be  apparent 
if  we  arrange  them  tabularly  : 


Iforthumb. 

Mercia. 

WesBei. 

Eent. 

Einff 

Jjrjmsaa. 

15000 

+  15000 

15000 

15000 

8000 

8000 

4000 

4000 

2000 

2000 

266 

anil. 
7200 

+7200 

1200 
1200 

200 

Soil. 

7200 

+7200 

1200 
1200 
600 
600 
600 
600 
200 

Soil. 

1500 

+  1500 

360 
360 

180 

Archbishop    ... 
jiDKeUng 

Bishop    

Ealdorman    . . . 
Hold  ...    . 

Heahger^fa    ... 
Priest 

Freeman    

If  these  data  be  accurate,  we  must  conclude  that 


CH.  X.] 


F^'HDE.     WERGYLD. 


287 


the  ratio  of  the  king  and  noble  to  the  ceorl  in  the 
diiFerent  states  varied  as  follows : 


North. 

king  :  ceorl  :  :  113    :  1 

nearly. 

Merc.  . 

.  king  :  ceorl  :  :    72    :  1. 

Wessex 

king  :  ceorl  :  :    72    :  1. 

Kent  . 

king  :  ceorl  :  :    17f  :  1. 

North. 

noble,  1st  class  :  ceorl  : 

56    :  1  nearly 

2nd  class  :  ceorl : 

30i  :  1  nearly 

3rd  class  :  ceorl  : 

ISj :  1  nearly 

4:th  class  :  ceorl  : 

7^ :  1  nearly 

Merc.  . 

.  noble  :  ceorl  :  :  6  :  1. 

Wessex 

.  noble,  1st  class  :  ceorl  : 

6:  1. 

2nd  class  :  ceorl  : 

:3:  1. 

Kent  . 

.  noble  :  ceorl  :  :  2  :  1. 

Now- this  variety,  which  is  totally  irrespective  of 
the  real  value  of  the  Jjryms  and  the  shilling,  seems 
to  involve  this  part  of  the  subject  in  impenetrable 
darkness.  All  that  we  can  permit  ourselves  to 
guess  is,  that  circumstances  had  in  process  of  time 
altered  the  original  relations  between  the  classes, 
but  in  different  ratios  in  the  different  kingdoms. 
This  however  is  not  all  the  difficulty :  we  have 
to  contend  with  the  complication  arising  from  the 
fact,  that  the  scilling,  the  currency  in  which  all  the 
southern  calculations  are  nominally  made,  really 
differed  in  value  in  the  several  states :  and  thus 
when  we  attempt  to  compare  one  freeman  with 
another,  we  find  their  respective  prices  to  be  in 
Mercia  833^  sceats,  in  Kent  3600. 

However  the  details  were  arranged,  the  principle 
itself  is  clear  enough,  and  we  must  now  be  content 


288  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

to  remain  in  ignorance  of  the  means  adopted  to  re- 
concile conflicting  interests  measured  by  a  standard 
so  imperfect. 

But  the  wergyld  or  price  of  the  whole  man  was 
not  all  that  the  law  professed  to  regulate.  When 
once  the  principle  had  been  admitted,  that  this 
might  be  fixed  at  a  certain  sum,  it  was  an  easy 
corollary  not  only  that  the  sum  in  question  should 
limit  the  amount  of  responsibility  to  the  State  ^  but 
that  a  tariff"  for  all  injuries  should  be  settled.  In 
the  laws  of  ^^elberht  and  JEUred  we  find  very 
detailed  assessments  of  the  damage  which  could  be 
done  to  a  man  by  injuries,  either  of  his  person,  his 
property,  or  his  honour :  many  of  these  are  amu- 
sing and  strange  enough,  and  highly  indicative 
of  the  rude  state  of  society  for  which  they  were 
adapted.  But  it  seems  unnecessary  to  pursue  the 
details  they  deal  with :  they  may  serve  to  turn  a 
period  about  Teutonic  barbarism,  or  to  point  a 
moral  about  human  fallibility;  but  the  circum- 
stances under  which  they  were  rational  and  con- 
venient arrangements  have  passed  away,  and  they 
are  now  of  little  interest  as  historical  records,  and 
of  none  with  a  view  to  future  utility. 

'  Capital  punishments  are  necessarily  rare  in  early  periods.  Tacitus 
limits  those  of  the  Germans  to  cases  of  high-treason  or  effeminacy,  two 
crimes  which  strike  at  the  root  of  all  society.  Hence  the  highest  pu- 
nishment is  payment  of  the  wergyld  :  a  capital  thief  is  wergyld-t'edf 
If  he  cannot  or  will  not  pay,  he  is  outlawed,  that  is  excluded  from  the 
■benefits  of  the  mutual  guarantee  among  free  men :  he  may  be  slain  as 
a  common  enemy,  iure  belli,  or  reduced  to  slavery,  which  is  the  more 
usual  result. 


289 


CHAPTER  XI. 

FOLOLAND.    BO'CLAND.    LiE'NLAND. 

It  was  a  wise  insight  into  the  accidents  o£  increa- 
sing population  which  limited  the  amount  of  the 
original  e^el,  or  allodial  estate.  By  leaving,  as  it 
were,  a  large  fund  to  be  drawn  upon,  as  occasion 
might  serve,  the  principle,  that  every  freeman  must 
be  settled  on  land,  was  maintained,  without  con- 
demning society  to  a  stationary  condition,  as  to 
numbers.  The  land  thus  left,  of  which  the  usu- 
fruct, under  certain  conditions,  was  enjoyed  by  the 
freemen,  was  called  Folcland,  terra  pioblica,  ager 
]publicus.  It  was  distinguished  from  the  e^el  by 
not  becoming  absolute  property  in  the  hands  of 
individuals,  consequently  by  not  being  hereditary. 
The  dominium  utile  might  be  granted ;  the  domi- 
nium directum  remained  in  the  state,  which  was  a 
perpetual  feoffee  [for  certain  trusts  and  uses.  And 
hence  folcland  was  subject  to  rents  of  divers  kinds, 
and  reversion.  The  folcland  could  also  be  applied 
to  reward  great  public  services,  in  which  case 
estates  of  alod,  or  e'Sel,  were  carved  out  of  it,  and 
presented  to  him  whom  the  community  desired  to 
honour^.     The  service  which  Wulf  and  Eofer  did 

'    IhdTififvos,  or  cut-off  portion,  entail,  ■which  service  miglit  earn 
umong  the  Greeks,  is  of  the  same  character.     According  to  tradition, 
VOL.  I.  U 


290  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

by  slaying  Ongen^eow  was  rewarded  with  a  grant 
of  land  and  rings^.  The  clearest  view  of  the  nature 
and  object  of  folcland  is  given  us  by  Beda,  who 
complains  that  it  is  diverted  from  its  proper  pur- 
pose,— which  is,  to  be  granted  as  a  support  to  those 
whose  arms  would  defend  the  country, — under  pre- 
tence of  erecting  monasteries,  which  are  a  disgrace 
to  their  profession.  The  following  are  his  extremely 
important  words : 

"And  since  there  are  both  very  numerous  and 
very  extensive  tracts,  which,  to  adopt  the  com- 
mon saying,  are  of  use  neither  to  God  nor  man, — 
seeing  indeed  that  in  them  there  is  neither  main- 
tained a  regular  life  according  to  God's  law,  nor 
are  they  possessed  by  the  soldiers  or  comites  of 
secular  persons,  who  might  defend  our  race  from 
the  barbarians, — if  any  one,  to  meet  the  want  of 
our  time,  should  establish  an  episcopal  see  in 
those  places,  he  will  be  proved  not  to  incur  the 

Pittacus  was  thus  rewarded  "by  the  people  of  Mitylene,  after  overcom- 
ing Phrynon,  the  Athenian  champion,  in  single  comhat :  tS>v  Sc  MirvKt}- 
vaifov  Bcopeas  aiira  fieyaXas  didovroiVj  aKovrlaas  to  dopv^  tovto  fjiovov  to 
X<opiov  r]^ia)(reVf  6<tov  iir^cr^ev  r)  alxp-y}'  Koi  KoKeiTaL  fJ-expt-  vvv  JlcTTaKLOv. 
Pint,  de  Malign.  Herod,  c.  xv.  The  reward  allotted  to  Horatius  in  the 
Roman  Ager  ought  now  to  be  familiar  to  every  one : 
"  They  gave  him  of  the  corn -land 

That  was  of  public  right, 

As  much  as  two  strong  oxen 

Could  plough  from  morn  till  night ! " 
'  "Geald  ^one  gii'Srass 

Geata  dryhten .... 

ofer  ma^mum  sealde 

heora  gehwseljrum 

hund  J>usenda 

landes  and  locenra  beaga." 

Beow.  1.  6077. 


CH.  XI.]  FOLCLAND  AND  BO'CLAND.  291 

guilt  of  prevarication,  but  rather  to  perform  an  act 
of  virtue  ^." 

And  again,  he  continues  : 

"By  which  example  it  behoves  also  your  Holi- 
ness, in  conjunction  with  our  religious  king,  to 
abrogate  the  irreligious  deeds  and  writings  of  our 
predecessors,  and  to  provide  for  the  general  ad- 
vantage of  our  kingdom,  either  in  reference  to 
God,  or  to  the  world :  lest  in  our  days,  either 
through  the  cessation  of  religion,  the  love  and  fear 
,  of  an  inspector  at  home  should  be  abandoned  ;  or, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  supply  of  our  secular  militia 
decreasing,  we  should  not  have  those  who  might 
defend  our  boundaries  from  the  incursions  of  bar- 
barians. For,  what  is  disgraceful  to  say,  persons 
who  have  not  the  least  claim  to  the  monastic  cha- 
racter, as  you  yourself  best  know,  have  got  so  many 
of  these  spots  into  their  power,  under  the  name  of 
monasteries,  that  there  is  really  now  no  place  at 
all  where  the  sons  of  nobles  or  veteran  soldiers  can 
receive  a  grant ^.  And  thus,  idle  and  unmarried, 
being  grown  up  to  manhood,  they  live  on  in  no  pro- 
fession of  chastity  ;  and  on  this  account,  they  either 
cross  the  sea  and  desert  the  country  which  they 
ought  to  serve  with  their  arms ;  or,  what  is  even 
more  criminal  and  shameless,  having  no  profession 

'  Bed.  Bpist.  ad  Ecgtirlitum  Archiepiscopum,  §  11.  (Opera  Min. 
ii.  21G.) 

^  We  know  that  these  grants  were  regulated  by  t^ie  rank  and  con- 
dition of  the  grantee.  Beda,  speaking  of  Benedict  Biscop,  a  young 
Northumbrian  nobleman,  says,  "Cum  esset  minister  Oswii  regis,  et 
possessionem  terrae  suo  gradui  competentem,  illo  donante  perciperet," 
etc.    Vit.  Sci.  Bened.  §  1.  (Op.  Min.  ii.  140.) 

U2 


292  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  chastity,  they  give  themselves  up  to  luxury  and 
fornication,  and  abstain  not  even  from  the  virgins 
consecrated  to  God^." 

The  evils  of  a  course  which,  by  preventing  the 
possibility  of  marriage,  tends  to  the  general  neglect 
of  morality,  are  as  obvious  in  this  state  of  society, 
as  in  those  where  the  indefinite  partition  of  estates 
reduces  all  the  members  of  the  higher  classes  to  a 
state  of  poverty, — a  fact  perfectly  familiar  in  coun- 
tries where  the  resources  of  trade  are  not  permitted 
to  mitigate  the  mischief  of  subdivision. 

The  folcland  then  in  England  was  the  national 
stock.  It  is  probable  that  the  same  thing  occurred 
in  other  Teutonic  states,  and  that  the  folcland  there 
also  formed  a  reserve  from  which  endowments  of 
individuals,  homeborn  or  foreign,  and  of  religious 
houses,  were  made.  Thus,  "  Princeps  de  eius  re- 
cuperatione  simul  et  postulatione  multum  gavisus, 
et  suum  ad  hoc  consensum  et  parentum  adeptus  est 
favorem  ;  deditque  illi  in  eisdem  partibus,  multas 
possessiones  de  publico,  quatinus  viciniori  potentia 
soceris  acceptior  factus,  non  minori  apud  illos,  quam 
in  genitali  solo  praecelleret  dignitate^." 

We  cannot  now  tell  the  exact  terms  upon  which 
the  usufruct  of  the  folcland  was  permitted  to  indi- 
vidual holders.  Much  of  it  was  probably  distri- 
buted in  severalty,  to  be  enjoyed  by  the  grantee 
during  his  life,  and  then  to  revert  to  the  donor  the 
State.  As  the  holders  of  such  lands  were  most  pro- 
bably not  included  in  the  Marks,  like  the  owners 

'  Epist.  §  11.  (Op.  Min.  ii.  217,  218.) 
^  Yit.  S.  Idae,  PertZ;  ii.  571. 


CH.  XI.]  FOLOLAND  AND  BO'OLAND.  293 

of  allodial  property,  they  may  have  formed  the  pro- 
per basis  of  the  original  gyldscipas,  and  have  been 
more  immediately  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
scirgemot ;  for  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  their 
condition  was  one  of  such  perfect  freedom  as  that 
of  the  original  allodial  owners. 

A  portion  also  of  the  folcland  may  long  have  sub- 
sisted as  common  land,  subject  to  the  general  rights 
of  all^.  In  this  respect  it  must  have  resembled  the 
public  land  of  the  Romans.  Only  that,  the  true 
Eoman  burghers  or  Patricians,  being  comparatively 
few,  while  the  other  claimants  were  many,  and  self- 
defence  therefore  commanded  the  utmost  caution 
in  admitting  them  to  isotely, — the  struggles  be- 
tween the  Patrician  and  Plebeian  orders  necessarily 
assumed  in  Rome  a  character  of  exasperation  and 
hostility  which  was  wanting  in  England.  But  it 
does  not  appear  that  in  this  country,  the  tribes  of 
the  Gewissas  could  have  made  any  claim  to  the 
folcland  of  the  Mercians,  or  that  those  of  the 
Welsh  would  have  found  favour  with  any  Saxon 
community. 

In  whatever  form  the  usufruct  may  have  been 
granted,  it  was  accompanied  by  various  settled 
burthens.  In  the  first  place  were  the  inevitable 
charges  from  which  no  land  was  ever  relieved ; 
namely  military  service,  alluded  to  by  Beda,  and 
no  doubt  in  early  times  performed  in  person :  the 

^  This  seems  the  readiest  way  of  accounting  for  the  right  of  common 
enjoyed  by  the  king,  ealdorman  and  geri5fa,  in  nearly  every  part  of 
England  ;  which  right  they  could  alienate  to  others.  For  the  king's 
common  of  pasture,  etc.  see  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  86,  119,  276,  288,  etc. 


294  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

repair  of  roads,  bridges  and  fortifications.  But 
besides  these,  there  were  dues  payable  to  the  king, 
and  the  gerefa;  watch  and  ward  on  various  occa- 
sions ;  aid  in  the  royal  hunting  ;  convoy  of  messen- 
gers going  and  coming  on  the  public  service,  from 
one  royal  vill  to  another ;  harbouring  of  the  king, 
his  messengers  and  huntsmen ;  lastly  provision  for 
his  hawks,  hounds  and  horses.  In  addition  to  these, 
there  were  heavy  payments  in  kind,  which  were  to 
be  delivered  at  the  royal  vills,  to  each  of  which, 
various  districts  were  apparently  made  appurtenant, 
for  this  purpose ;  and  on  which  stores,  so  duly  de- 
livered, the  king  and  his  household  in  some  degree 
depended  for  subsistence.  These  were  comprised 
under  the  name  Cyninges-feorm,  or  Firma  regis. 

It  is  from  the  occasional  exemptions  granted  by 
the  authority  of  the  king  and  his  witan,  that  we 
learn  what  burthens  the  fololand  was  subject  to :  it 
may  therefore  be  advantageous  to  cite  a  few  exam- 
ples, which  will  make  the  details  clear. 

Between  791  and  796,  eighty  hides  of  land  at 
Westbury  and  Hanbury  were  relieved  by  Oifa  from 
the  dues  to  kings,  dukes  and  their  subordinates ; 
except  these  payments,  that  is  to  say,  the  gafol  at 
Westbury  (sixty  hides),  two  tuns  full  of  bright 
ale,  and  a  comb  full  of  smooth  ale,  and  a  comb  full 
of  Welsh  ale,  and  seven  oxen,  and  six  wethers,  and 
forty  cheeses,  and  six  lang^ero  C?},  and  thirty  am- 
bers of  rough  corn,  and  four  ambers  of  meal,  to  the 
royal  vilP. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  166.     Here,  by  the  way,  the  comb  is  used  as  a 
liquid  measure ;  very  probably  of  thirty-two"  gallons,  the  amount  of  the 


CH.  XL]  FOLOLAND  AND  BO'OLAND.  295 

In  863,  an  estate  at  Marsham  was  to  pay  by  the 
year,  twenty  staters  of  cheese,  forty  lambs,  forty 
fleeces,  and  two  days'  pastus  ^  or  feorm,  which  last 
might  be  commuted  for  thirty  silver  shillings  {ar- 
genteaf. 

In  877,  Bishop  Tunberht,  with  the  consent  of  his 
chapter,  appropriated  lands  at  Nursling  to  the  use 
of  the  refectory.  His  charter  says  he  grants  it, 
"  liberam  ab  omnibus  terrenis  difficultatibus  om- 
nium gravitudinum,  sive  a  pasta  regis,  principis, 
exactoris ;  et  ab  omni  aedificiorum  opere,  tribute, 
a  paraveredis,  a  taxationibus  quod  dicimus  wite- 
rE^dene ;  omnium  rerum  saecularium  perpetualiter 
libera  sit,  excepta  expeditione  et  pontis  aedifica- 
tione^."  As  he  could  not  do  this  by  his  own  au- 
thority, he  probably  only  means  to  record  that  they 
had  been  so  freed  by  the  Witena-gemot. 

In  883,  twenty  years  later,  a  monastery  is  freed 
from  all  which  the  monks  were  still  bound  to  pay 
to  the  king's  hand,  as  cyningfeorm,  both  in  bright 
ale,  beer,  honey,  oxen,  swine  and  sheep,  in  short 
from  all  the  gafoU  much  or  little,  known  or  un- 
known, that  belongs  to  the  lord  of  the  nation*. 

The  dues  from  the  monastery  at  Taunton  were 
as  follows :  a  feorm  of  one  night  for  the  king,  and 

old  barrel  of  ale,  (the  present  barrel  is  thirty-six  gallons).  So  to  this 
day  the  hogshead  is  sixty-four  gallons  or  twice  thirty-two,  the  comb  ; 
as  the  quarter  is  sixty-four  gallons,  or  two  combs  of  dry  measure.  Even 
now  in  some  parts  of  Surrey  and  Sussex,  the  peasants  use  peck  for 
two  gallons  of  liquid  measure :  I  have  heard  them  speak  of  a  peck,  .and 
even  half  a  bushel,  of  gin,  brandy,  beer,  etc. 

'  The  pastus  regis  is  the  gite  du  roi  well  known  in  French  history. 

■^  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  288,  see  also  No.  281. 

"  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1063.  "  Ibid.  No.  313. 


296  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

eight  dogs  and  one  dog-keeper;  and  nine  nights' 
keep  for  the  king's  falconers ;  and  carriage  with 
waggons  and  horses  for  whatever  he  would  have 
taken  to  Curry  or  Wilton.  And  if  strangers  came 
from  other  parts,  they  were  to  have  guidance  to  the 
nearest  royal  vill  upon  their  road^. 

The  payments  reserved  upon  twenty  hides  at 
Titchbourn,  which  Eadweard  in  901-909  granted 
to  Denewulf  of  Winchester  for  three  lives,  were 
probably  the  old  royal  gafol :  they  were  now  trans- 
ferred to  the  church  as  double-commons  for  foun- 
der's day.  They  amounted  to,  twelve  sexters  of 
beer,  twelve  of  sweetened  Welsh  ale,  twenty  ambers 
of  bright  ale,  two  hundred  large  and  one  hundred 
small  loaves,  two  oxen  fresh  or  salted,  six  wethers, 
four  swine,  four  flitches,  and  twenty  cheeses ;  but  if 
the  day  of  payment  should  fall  in  Lent,  an  equiva- 
lent of  fish  might  be  paid  instead  of  flesh  2. 

"  Insuper  etiam,  hanc  praedictam  terram  liberabo 
ab  omni  servitute  saecularium  rerum,  a  pastu  regis, 
episcopi,  praefectorum,  exactorum,  ducum,  canum, 
vel  equorum  seu  accipitrum ;  ab  refectione  et  habitu 
illorum  omnium  qui  dicuntur  Fsestingmen,"  etc.^ 

"  Sint  liberati  a  pastu  principum,  et  a  difficultate 
ilia  quod  nos  Saxonice  dicimus  Festingmen;  nee 
homines  illuc  mittant  qui  accipitros  veL  falcones 
portant,  aut  canes  aut  caballos  ducunt ;  sed  sint 
liberati  perpetualiter  in  sevum^." 

"  Ab  opere  regali  et  pastu  regis  et  principis,  vel 
iuniorum  eorum ;  ab  hospitorum  refectione  vel  vena- 

'  Cod.  DipL'No.  1084,  an.  904.  =  Ibid.  No.  1088. 

3  Ibid.  No.  216,  an.  822.  *  Ibid.  No.  257,  an.  844. 


CH.  XI.  j  FOLCLAND  AND  BO'CLAND.  297 

torum ;  etiam  equorum  regis,  falconum  et  ancipi- 
trum,  et  puerorum  qui  ducunt  canes  ^." 

"Ut  sit  liberatum  et  absolutum  illud  monaste- 
rium  ab  illis  causis  quas  Cumfeorme  et  Eafor  voci- 
temus ;  turn  a  pastu  accipitrorum  meorum,  quam 
etiam  venatorum  omnium,  vel  a  pastu  equorum 
meorum  omnium,  sive  ministrorum  eorum.  Quid 
plura,  ab  omni  ilia  incommoditate  ^fres  et  Cum- 
feorme, nisi  istis  causis  quas  hie  nominamus  :  prae- 
cones  si  trans  mare  venirent  ad  regem  venturi, 
vel  nuncii  de  gente  Occidentalium  Saxonum  vel 
de  gente  Northanhymbrorum,  si  venirent  ad  horam 
tertiam  diei  vel  ad  medium  diem,  dabitur  illis  pran- 
dium ;  si  venirent  super  nonam  horam,  tunc  dabi- 
tur eis  noctis  pastum,  et  iterum  de  mane  pergent 
in  viam  suam^." 

"  Et  illam  terram  iii  manentium  in  Beonetlege, 
in  occidentale  plaga  Saebrine  etiam  liberabo  a 
pascua  porcorum  re[g]is,  quod  nominamus  Fearn- 
leswe^." 

"  Liberabo  illud  a  pastu  et  ab  refectione  omnium 
ancipitrum  et  falconum  in  terra  Mercensium,  et 
omnium  venatorum  regis  vel  principis,  nisi  ipso- 
rum  tantum  qui  in  provincia  Hvpicciorum  sunt ; 
etiam  similiter  et  a  pastu  et  refectione  illorum 
hominum  quos  Saxonice  nominamus  Wselhfsereld, 
■j  heora  fsesting,  *j  ealra  Angelcynnes  monna,  "] 
geljieodigra  rsedefsestinge,  tam  nobilium  quam  igno- 
bilium*." 

In  875,  Ceolwulf,  the  intrusive  king  of  Mercia, 

1  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  2.38,  an.  845.  ^  Ibid.  No.  261,  an.  848. 

3  Ibid.  No.  277,  an.  8.jo.  <  Ibid.  No.  278,  an.  855, 


298  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

freed  all  the  bishopric  of  Worcester,  "  tota  parochia 
Hwicciorum," — in  other  words  all  the  churches 
belonging  to  it, — from  the  "pastus  equorum  regis," 
and  their  keepers^. 

Many  of  the  instances  we  meet  with,  both  in 
England  and  upon  the  Continent,  are  those  of 
churches  or  monasteries  :  this  is  natural,  inasmuch 
as  the  clergy  were  most  likely  to  obtain  and  record 
these  exemptions.  But  how,  it  may  be  asked,  did 
it  happen  that  such  exemptions  were  necessary  ] 
It  seems  to  me  that,  when  Christianity  was  intro- 
duced, and  folcland  was  granted  for  the  erection  or 
the  endowment  of  a  church,  the  burthens  were  not 
always  discharged ;  and  that  the  piety  of  later  times 
was  occasionally  appealed  to,  to  remedy  the  care- 
lessness or  alter  the  policy  of  early  founders. 

Folcland  may  be  considered  the  original  and  ge- 
neral name  of  all  estates  save  the  hlot,  sors  or  alod 
of  the  first  markmen :  the  whole  country  was  di- 
vided into  Folclands,  containing  one  or  more  hides, 
subject  to  folcriht  or  the  public  law, — and  hence 
having  no  privilege  or  immunity  of  any  sort;  in 
many  instances  where  Beda  uses  terra  unius  tribu- 
tarii,  terra  familiae  unius,  and  similar  expressions, 
he  can  only  mean  to  denote  separate  and  distinct 
portions  of  folcland,  and  the  words  of  Alfred's 
translation  imply  the  same  thing. 

The  power  of  disposal  over  this  land  lay  in  the 
nation  itself,  or  the  state  ;  that  is,  in  the  king  and 
his  witan ;  but  in  what  way,  or  by  what  ceremonies, 

'  Cod.  Dip].  No.  30G,  an.  875. 


CH.  XI.]  FOLOLAND  AND  BO'OLAND.  299 

it  was  conferred,  we  no  longer  know.  Still  there 
is  great  probability  that  it  was  done  by  some  of 
those  well-known  symbols,  which  survived  both  at 
home  and  abroad  in  the  familiar  forms  of  livery  of 
seisin, — by  the  straw,  the  rod  or  yard,  the  cespes 
viridis  and  the  like^.  We  may  however  distinctly 
assert  that  it  was  not  given  by  book  or  charter,  in- 
asmuch as  this  form  was  reserved  to  pass  estates 
under  very  different  circumstances. 

The  very  fact  that  folcland  was  not  the  object  of 
a  charter  causes  our  information  respecting  it  to  be 
meagre :  it  is  merely  incidentally  and  fortuitously 
that  it  is  mentioned  in  those  documents  from  which 
we  derive  so  much  valuable  insight  into  the  anti- 
quities of  Saxon  England.  But  even  from  them  we 
may  infer  that  it  was  not  hereditary. 

Towards  the  end  of  the  ninth  century,  ^Elfred, 
who  appears  to  have  been  ealdorman  or  duke  of 
Surrey,  devised  his  lands  by  will.  He  left  almost 
all  his  property  to  his  daughter;  and  to  his  son 
iESelwald  (perhaps  an  illegitimate  child,)  he  gave 
only  three  hides  of  hereditary  land,  bocland,  ex- 
pressing however  his  hope  that  the  king  would 
permit  his  son  to  hold  the  folcland  he  himself  had 
held.  But  as  this  was  uncertain,  in  order  to  meet 
the  case  of  a  disappointment,  he  directed  that  if 
the  king  refused  this,  his  daughter  should  choose 

^  Perhaps  in  a  case  of  this  sort,  even  Ingulf  may  be  trusted  :  he  tells 
lis,  with  some  reference  however  to  the  Norman  forms  of  livery,  with 
which  he  was  familiar,  "  Conferehantur  etiam  prime  multa  praedia 
nudo  verbo,  absque  scripto  vel  charta,  tantum  cum  domini  gladio,  vel 
galea,  vel  cornu,  vel  cratera ;  et  plurima  tt  nementa  cimi  calcari,  cum 
strigili,  cum  arcu,  et  nonnuUa  cum  sagitta."    Hist.  Croyl.  p.  70. 


300  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

which  she  would  give  her  brother,  of  two  hereditary- 
estates  which  he  had  devised  to  her  ^. 

Again,  shortly  before  the  Conquest,  we  find  Abbot 
Wulfwold  thus  informing  Gisa  bishop  of  Wells, 
jEgelno^  the  abbot,  Tofig  the  sheriflF,  and  all  the 
thanes  in  Somerset^: 

"  Eadweard  the  king,  my  lord,  gave  me  the  land 
at  Corfestige  which  my  father  held,  and  the  four 
farms  at  ^scwic,  and  the  fields  of  meadow-land 
thereunto  belonging,  and  in  wood  and  field  so  much 
that  I  had  pasture  for  my  cattle  and  the  cattle  of 
my  men ;  and  all  as  free  in  every  respect  as  the 
king's  own  demesme,  to  give  or  sell,  during  my  day 
or  after  my  day,  to  whomsoever  it  best  pleases  me." 

In  both  these  cases  it  is  clear  that  the  land  was 
holden  as  a  benefice ;  that  the  tenant  had  only  a 
life  interest,  which  Wulfwold  however  succeeded  in 
converting  into  a  fee. 

As  the  State  were  the  grantors,  so  also  there  ap- 
pears to  have  been  no  restriction  as  to  the  persons  of 
the  grantees.  Of  course  this  does  not  include  serfs, 
or  others  below  the  degree  of  freemen;  although  an 
emancipated  serf  may  sometimes  have  been  pro- 
vided with  an  estate  of  folcland,  by  general  dona- 
tion. But  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  every 
other  class  might  obtain  grants  of  folcland.  Those 
of  a  duke  and  of  various  bishops  have  been  men- 
tioned ;  Wulfwold's  father  was  probably,  at  least  a 
thane.     But  even  the  king  himself  could  and  did 

1  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  317. 

^  Members  of  the  soi'rgemot  or  county-court :  hence  the  instrument 
is  of  a  solemn  and  legal  description.     Cod.  Dipl.  No.  831. 


CH.  XI.]  FOLOLAND  AND  BO'CLAND.  ?>01 

hold  land  of  this  description.  The  boundary  of  an 
estate  is  said  to  run  to  the  king's  folcland ;  "  ab 
occidente  Cyninges  folcland  quod  habet  Wighelm 
et  Wulflaf  1." 

At  a  very  early  period  however  it  became  a  prac- 
tice to  carve  hereditary  estates  out  of  the  folcland, 
which  thus  became  the  private  property  of  the 
individual,  and  could  by  him  be  given,  sold,  or 
devised  at  his  pleasure ;  by  which  the  reversion  to 
the  state  was  defeated,  and  the  common  stock  in- 
sofar diminished.  It  was  also  usual  to  release  such 
land  from  all  the  dues  which  had  previously  been 
rendered  from  it,  and  to  make  it  absolutely  free^, 
with  the  exception  of  the  three  services  which 
were  inevitably  incident  to  all  landed  possession, 
and  which  are  consequently  known  by  the  names 
of  Communis  labor,  Oeneralis  incommodifas,  Onus 
inevitalile,  Trinoda  necessitas,  and  similar  expres- 
sions. These  estates  were  always  granted  by  book 
or  charter,  and  hence  bore  the  name  of  bocland : 
and  it  is  questionable  whether  the  two  descriptions 
did  not,  at  a  very  early  period,  comprise  all  the 
land  in  England,  as  the  families  of  the  first  allodial 
possessors  died  out^  and  their  possessions  either 
reverted  to  the  state,  or  became  alienated  under 
circumstances  which  included  them  in  the  category 
of  bocland. 

We  learn  that  the  pretext  upon  which  these  con- 

»  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  28]. 

^  Hence  a  free  hide,  hida  libera,  is  properly  called  "an  hiwisc 
Eegefeles  landes,"  a  hide  of  land  that  pays  no  gafol  or  tax.  Cod, 
Dipl.  No.  1070. 


303  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i, 

versions  of  folcland  into  bocland  were  made  at  first, 
was  the  erection  and  endowment  of  a  religious  house 
upon  the  land,  by  the  grantee  ;  and  we  also  learn 
that  sometimes  the  conversion  was  made,  the  thane 
presented  with  the  estate,  but  the  church  or  mo- 
nastery not  constructed.  Soon  after  the  introduc- 
tion of  Christianity  into  Northumberland,  it  appears 
indeed  to  have  been  customary  to  grant  much 
greater  privileges  and  immunities  to  church-lands 
than  were  found  advisable  at  a  later  period,  or  than 
seem  to  have  been  permitted  in  the  provinces  south 
of  the  Humber.  It  stands  to  reason  that  there 
could  be  no  reversion  in  lands  granted  to  a  corpo- 
ration: hence  folcland  which  had  been  presented  to 
a  church  assumed  what  may  be  called  a  hereditary 
character^,  and  could  only  lapse  by  total  destruc- 
tion of  the  particular  body, — a  circumstance  which 
could  obviously  never  be  contemplated,  but  which 
did  actually  occur  during  the  civil  wars,  internal 
dissensions  and  foreign  invasions,  which  gradually 
changed  the  face  of  the  whole  country^.  But  the 
lands  which  the  Northumbrian  princes  devoted  to 
pious  purposes,  were  most  likely  relieved  from  all 
burthens  whatsoever  :  we  have  conclusive  evidence 
that  even  military  service  was  excused  in  that  dis- 
trict before  the  time  of  Beda.     In  all  probability, 

'  Land  is  sometimes  called  Bishop-land,  wliicli  I  imagine  to  be  the 
legal  designation  of  this  particular  estate. 

^  This  -was  the  case  with  Peterhorough,  Ely  and  other  ancient  foun- 
dations restored  in  the  time  of  Eadgar.  He  himself  says  of  Ely :  "Nii 
wees  se  halga  stede  yfele  forlaeten  mid  laessan  Jjcowdome  tSonne  lis  ge- 
licode  mi  on  urum  timan,  and  eac  wees  gehwyi-fed  t>am  cyninge  to 
handa,  ic  cwe'Se  be  me  silfum."   Cod.  Dip.  No.  563. 


CH.  XI.]  FOLCLAND  AND  BO'CLAND.  303 

it  was  not  suspected  how  much  the  defences  of 
the  country  might  become  impaired  by  grants  of 
the  kind.  The  passages  already  cited  from  Beda's 
epistle  to  Ecgberht  may  be  adduced  in  corrobo- 
ration of  these  assertions,  but  we  have  more  direct 
evidence  in  his  history  ^.  Oswiu  on  his  conver- 
sion placed  his  daughter  Eanflged  in  the  convent 
presided  over  by  Hild,  and  with  her  he  gave 
twelve  estates,  "  possessiunculae  terrarum,"  most 
likely  folcland,  each  estate  comprising  ten  hides  ; 
in  which,  Beda  continues,  "  Ablato  studio  militiae 
terrestris,  ad  exercendam  militiam  coelestem  locus 
facultasque  suppeteret," — or  as  the  Saxon  trans- 
lator expresses  it,  "  Those  twelve  boclands  he  freed 
from  earthly  warfare  and  earthly  service,  to  be  em- 
ployed in  heavenly  warfare."  It  is  very  clear  that 
the  duties  of  military  service  were  removed  in  this 
case,  and  that  religious  warfare  was  to  be  the  des- 
tination of  those  that  held  the  lands.  Similarly 
when  Benedict  Biscop  decided  upon  devoting  him- 
self to  a  monastic  life,  he  surrendered  his  lands  to 
the  king  ^.  These  must  obviously  have  been  folc- 
land, the  retaining  of  which  he  considered  impos- 
sible, under  the  circumstances ;  and  which,  not 
being  his  own,  he  could  not  take  with  him  into  a 
monastery :  "  despexit  militiam  cum  corruptibili 
donative  terrestrem,  ut  vero  regi  militaret ;  "  and 
these  words  of  Beda  clearly  show  how  we  are 
to  understand  what  he  says  of  Oswiii's  grant  to 
Whitby. 

'■  Hist.  Eccl.  iii.  24. 

-  Bed.  Vit.  Sci.  Bened.  §  1.  (Op,  Minor,  ii.  140.) 


304  TPIE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

The  gaining  of  a  hereditary  character  for  lands, 
and  especially  the  relief  from  heavy  dues,  were  ad- 
vantages which  might  speedily  arouse  the  avarice 
and  stimulate  the  invention  even  of  barbarians. 
Accordingly  those  who  could  gain  access  to  the  ear 
of  the  king  and  his  witan,  bought,  or  begged  or  ex- 
torted grants  of  privileged  land,  which  they  either 
converted  entirely  into  private  estates,  or  upon 
which  they  erected  monasteries,  nominally  such: 
and  over  these,  which  they  filled  with  irregular  and 
often  profligate  monks,  they  assumed  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  abbots;  with  such  little  advantage  to  the 
service  of  religion,  that  we  have  seen  Beda  describe 
them  as  a  public  scandal,  and  recommend  even  the 
desperate  remedy  of  cancelling,  by  royal  and  epis- 
copal authority,  the  privilegia  or  charters  on  which 
their  immunities  reposed. 

To  the  growing  prevalence  of  this  fraud  we  pro- 
bably owe  it  that,  at  least  in  Wessex,  the  custom 
arose  of  confiscating  land  on  which  the  conditions 
of  the  grant  had  not  been  fulfilled.  Thus  Ini  called 
in  the  lands  which  Cissa  had  granted  to  Hean  the 
abbot  and  Cille  the  abbess,  his  sister,  because  no 
religious  buildings  had  been  erected  thereon :  "  Sed 
Ini  rex  eandem  terram,  postea  dum  regno  potire- 
tur,  dirij>iens  ac  reipuhlicae  restituit,  nondum  con- 
structo  monasterio  in  ea,  nee  ullo  admodum  ora- 
torio erecto^;"  that  is,  as  I  understand  it,  folcland 
they  had  been,  and  folcland  they  again  became.  But 
even  this  did  not  meet  all  the  exigencies  of  the  case, 

1  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  46. 


CH.  XL]  FOLOLA.ND  AND  BO'OLAND.  305 

and  it  therefore  probably  became  necessary,  even 
in  bocland  granted  to  the  church,  to  reserve  the 
mihtary  and  other  services,  which  the  clergy  could 
cause  to  be  performed  by  their  own  dependent  culti- 
vators or  tenants,  even  if  they  were  not  compelled 
to  serve  themselves, — a  point  which  is  by  no  means 
clear  1. 

A  majority  of  the  documents  contained  in  the 
Codex  Diplomaticus  ^vi  Saxonici  are  conversions 
of  folcland  into  bocland,  or  confirmations  of  such 
conversions.  They  almost  universally  contain  a 
clause  declaring  or  proclaiming — such  is  the  tech- 
nical word  for  this  important  public  act,  by  which 
prince  and  king,  ealdorman  and  sheriff,  were  at 
once  made  strangers  to  the  land — the  estate  free 
from  every  burthen  save  the  inevitable  three ;  a 
clause  giving  the  fullest  hereditary  possession,  and 
the  power  to  dispose  of  it  by  will  at  the  testator's 
pleasure ;  and  finally  a  clause  stating  that  this  is 
done  by  the  authority  of  the  king,  with  the  advice, 
consent  and  license  of  his  Witan  or  counsellors. 
They  remain  therefore  to  the  last  important  public 
acts,  and  are,  I  believe  universally,  to  be  considered 
acts  of  the  assembled  Witena-gemot  or  great  coun- 
cil of  the  nation^.  And  as  by  their  authority  folc- 
land could  be  converted  into  bocland,  so  it  appears 
could  the  reverse  take  place ;  and  a  change  in  the 
nature  of  two  estates  is  recorded  ^,  where  the  king 

'  "  Quam  videlicet  terram  Allimundus  atbas,  expeditionem  subter- 
fugiens,  mihi  reconciliationis  gratia  dabat."   Ood.  Dipl.  No.  161. 

^  See  hereafter  the  chapter  which  treats  of  the  Witan  and  their 
powers.    Book  ii.  ch.  6. 

»  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  281. 
VOL.  I.  X 


306  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i, 

gave  five  ploughlands  of  folcland  for  five  of  bocland, 
and  then  made  the  folcland  bocland,  the  bocland 
folcland. 

In  this  general  spoliation  it  is  to  be  supposed  that 
the  kings  would  not  omit  to  share  :  accordingly  we 
find  them  causing  estates  to  be  booked  to  them  by 
their  witan  ;  which  estates,  when  thus  become  their 
private  and  heritable  property,  they  devise  and  deal 
with  at  their  pleasure :  and  indeed,  as  the  king's 
consent  was  necessary  to  all  such  conversions,  he 
was  much  better  able  to  obtain  that  of  his  witan  in 
his  own  case,  than  bishops,  thanes  or  others  were 
in  their  cases :  these  generally  found  themselves 
compelled  to  pay  handsomely  for  the  favour  they 
required.  With  respect  to  ecclesiastical  lands,  we 
frequently  find  a  loss  of  very  large  estates  sub- 
mitted to,  in  order  to  secure  freedom  to  what  re- 
mained. There  are  also  a  few  instances  in  which 
lands  having  descended,  encumbered  with  pay- 
ments, the  owners  engage  some  powerful  noble  or 
ecclesiastic  to  obtain  their  freedom, — that  is,  to  per- 
suade the  witan  into  abolishing  the  charges.  The 
gratuity  offered  to  the  member  whose  influence  was 
to  carry  these  ancient  private  acts  of  parliament,  is 
often  very  considerable.  Towards  the  closing  pe- 
riod of  the  Anglosaxon  polity,  I  should  imagine 
that  nearly  every  acre  of  land  in  England  had  be- 
come bocland  ;  and  that  as,  in  consequence  of  this, 
there  was  no  more  room  for  the  expansion  of  a  free 
population,  the  condition  of  the  freemen  became  de- 
pressed, while  the  estates  of  the  lords  increased  in 
number  and  extent.     In  this  way  the  ceorlas  or  free 


CH.  xt.]  FOLCLAND  AND  BO'CLANl).  307 

cultivators  gradually  vanished,  yielding  to  the  ever 
growing  force  of  the  noble  class,  accepting  a  de- 
pendent position  upon  their  bocland,  and  standing 
to  right  in  their  courts,  instead  of  their  own  old 
county  gemotas ;  while  the  lords  themselves  ran 
riot,  dealt  with  their  once  free  neighbours  at  their 
own  discretion,  and  filled  the  land  with  civil  dis- 
sensions which  not  even  the  terrors  of  a  foreign  inva- 
sion could  still.  Nothing  can  be  more  clear  than 
that  the  universal  breaking  up  of  society  in  the  time 
of  ^Selred  had  its  source  in  the  ruin  of  the  old 
free  organization  of  the  country.  The  successes  of 
Swegen  and  Cnut,  and  even  of  William  the  Norman, 
had  much  deeper  causes  than  the  mere  gain  or  loss 
of  one  or  more  battles.  A  nation  never  falls  till 
"  the  citadel  of  its  moral  being"  has  been  betrayed 
and  become  untenable.  Northern  invasions  will 
not  account  for  the  state  of  brigandage  which 
yESelred  and  his  Witan  deplore  in  so  many  of  their 
laws.  The  ruin  of  the  free  cultivators  and  the 
overgrowth  of  the  lords  are  much  more  likely 
causes.  At  the  same  time  it  is  even  conceivable 
that,  but  for  the  invasions  of  the  ninth  and  tenth 
centuries,  the  result  which  I  have  described  might 
have  come  upon  us  more  suddenly.  The  sword 
and  the  torch,  plague,  pestilence  and  famine  are 
very  effectual  checks  to  the  growth  of  population, 
and  sufiicient  for  a  long  time  to  adjust  the  balance 
between  the  land  and  those  it  has  to  feed. 

An  estate  of  bocland  might  be  subject  to  condi- 
tions. It  was  perhaps  not  always  easy  to  obtain 
from  the  Witan  all  that  avarice  desired :  accordingly 

x2 


308  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

we  sometimes  find  limitations  in  grants,  to  a  cer- 
tain number  of  lives  with  remainders  and  reversions. 
And  it  was  both  law  and  custom  not  only  that  the 
first  acquirer  might  impose  what  conditions  he 
pleased  upon  the  descent  of  the  estate,  but  that  to 
all  time  his  expressed  will  in  that  respect  should 
bind  those  who  derived  their  title  from  him  ^.  Al- 
fred requires  his  Witan,  who  are  the  guarantees 
and  administrators  of  his  will,  to  see  that  he  has 
not  violated  the  disposition  of  his  ancestors  by 
leaving  lands  to  women  which  had  been  entailed 
on  the  male  line,  and  vice  versd^ ;  and  we  have 
cases  of  grants  solemnly  avoided  for  like  want  of 
conformity.  More  questionable  in  point  of  prin- 
ciple is  the  right  attempted  to  be  set  up  by  some 
of  these  purchasers,  to  bar  escheat  and  forfei- 
ture of  the  land  upon  felony  of  their  heirs  or  devi- 
sees. 

It  is  to  be  presumed  that  a  tenant  of  folcland 
was  permitted  to  let  the  same, — upon  condition  no 
doubt  that  he  conveyed  no  estate  superior  to  his 
own.  The  holders  must  have  been  allowed  to  place 
poor  settlers  upon  their  estates,  whose  rents  and 
services,  in  labour  and  kind,  would  be  important 
to  their  own  subsistence.  Of  course  in  bocland  no 
limitation  could  be  thought  of ;  it  was  the  absolute, 
inheritable  property  of  the  purchaser,  and  he  could 
in  general  dispose  of  it  as  freely  as  if  it  were  alod 
itself.  But  there  seems  no  reason  to  doubt  that 
much  the  same  course  was  adopted  in  both  descrip- 

'  Leg.  iElfr.  §  4L  ^  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  314. 


CH.  XI.]  FOLCLAND  AND  BO'CLAND.  309 

tions  of  estate ;  the  folcland  being  held  beyond  ques- 
tion for  term  of  life,  at  every  period  of  which  our 
history  takes  cognizance,  whatever  may  have  been 
the  case  at  first.  A  portion  called  the  inland,  or  do- 
minium, demesne,  was  reserved  for  the  lord's  home- 
stead, house  and  farms,  and  the  dwellings  of  his  serfs, 
esnes,  Isets,  and  other  unfree  and  poor  dependents. 
This  was  cultivated  for  him  by  their  industry,  and 
he  repaid  their  services  by  protection,  food,  clothing, 
and  small  perquisites,  all  of  which  now  pass 
under  the  general  name  of  wages  i.  On  the  upland 
and  in  the  forests,  sometimes  his  own,  sometimes 
subject  only  to  his  rights  of  common,  they  tended 
his  sheep,  oxen  and  steeds  at  the  fold,  or  his  swine 
in  the  mast,  lying  out  during  the  appointed  season 
of  the  year  2,  or  within  the  circuit  of  his  own  inclo- 
sures  they  exercised  such  simple  manufactures  as 
the  necessities  of  the  household  required.  The  spin- 
ner and  weaver,  the  glove-  or  shoemaker,  the  smith 
and  carpenter,  were  all  parts  of  the  family.  The 
butter  and  cheese,  bread  and  bacon,  were  made  at 
home ;  the  beer  was  brewed  and  the  honey  collected 


'  Wages  of  course  need  not  comprise  money,  or  be  the  result  of  a 
compact  between  free  parties.  We  pay  a  slave  wages,  though  no  penny 
fee.  It  is  a  different  question  whether  it  is  advisable  that  labourers 
should  be  slaves :  the  Anglosaxons  had  their  peculiar  views  on  that 
subject,  which  we  are  not  to  discuss  now. 

^  "  Alio  quoque  tempore,  in  adolescentia  sua,  dum  adhuc  esset  in 
popular!  vita,  quando  in  montanis  iuxta  fluvium,  quod  dicitur  Leder, 
cum  aliis  pastoribus,  pecora  domini  sui  pasoebat,"  etc.  Anon.  Cu^berht, 
cap.  8.  (Beda,  Op.  Min.  ii.  262.)  "  Oontigit  sum  remotis  in  montibus 
commissorum  sibi  pecorum  agere  custodiam."  Beda,  Ou'Sb.  c.  4.  Op. 
Min.  ii.  55.  The  Hungarian  Salas  on  the  Pusta  is  much  the  same 
thing,  at  the  present  day. 


310  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

by  the  household.  The  remainder  of  the  land  the 
owner  leased  on  various  conditions  to  men  who 
had  no  land;  demanding  in  return  for  that  com- 
modity, indispensable  in  a  country  which  has  not 
yet  learnt  to  manufacture,  rents  paid  in  kind,  in 
labour,  and  even  in  money.  This  labour-rent,  yet 
called  rohot  in  Slavonic  countries,  as  well  as  the 
other  dues,  naturally  varied  in  various  districts, 
partly  with  the  importance  of  land  i,  to  the  culti- 
vator, and  the  value  of  its  produce  to  the  owner. 
And  at  last  political  motives  may  have  had  some 
weight,  when  the  number  and  condition  of  a  man's 
dependents  might  affect  his  own  influence  and  po- 
sition in  the  state :  but  in  general  we  shall  be  justi- 
fied in  saying  that  land  was  very  valuable,  and  the 
conditions  on  which  it  was  to  be  obtained  harsh  and 
onerous^.  Such  land,  whether  in  large  or  in  small 
portions,  whether  leased  on  long  or  short  terms, 
large  or  small  rents,  was  called  by  the  common 
name  of  Lsen,  or  loan  ^.  It  was  considered  to  be 
lent ;  and  where  the  Isen  was  on  folcland,  it  is  ob- 


^  The  "  Eeotitudines  Sing^ilarum  Personarum  "  inform  us  ttat  they 
were  very  different  in  different  places,  which  necessarily  would  he  the 
case.  We  can  imagine  that  a  butsecarl  or  fisherman  of  Kent  was  not 
so  anxious  to  have  a  holding  as  a  peasant  in  Gloucestershire. 

=  Even  in  the  eighth  century  Ini  found  it  necessary  to  enact,  that  if 
a  man  took  land  on  condition  of  gafol  or  produce-rent,  and  his  lord 
endeavoured  to  raise  his  rent  also  to  service,  he  need  not  abide  by  the 
bargain,  unless  the  lord  would  build  him  a  house :  and  he  was,  in  such 
a  case,  not  to  lose  the  crop  he  had  prepared.    Ini,  §  67.   Thorpe,  i.  146. 

^  The  transitory  possessions  of  this  life  were  often  so  described,  in 
reference  to  the  Almighty:  ««a  Eehta^ehim  God  alffinedh^fs."  Cod. 
Dipl.  No.  699.  A  l»n  for  life,  even  though  guarded  by  a  very  detailed 
bdc  or  charter,  is  distinctly  called  beneficium  by  the  grantee,  .^Selbald 
of  Wessex.     Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1058. 


CH.  XI.]  LiE-NLAND.  311 

vious  that  no  certain  time  could  be  assigned,  and 
that  the  after-tenant  could  have  only  a  tenancy  at 
will.  In  any  case  it  was  reasonable  that  miscon- 
duct in  the  holder,  which  would  have  entailed  upon 
him  the  forfeiture  of  his  own  real  property,  should 
not  be  permitted  to  interfere  with  the  rights  of  the 
reversioner :  Isenland  therefore  could  not  be  taken 
from  the  owner,  for  the  crime  of  the  tenant.  In  the 
year  900  a  certain  Helmstan  was  guilty  of  theft,  and 
the  sheriff  seized  all  his  chattels  to  the  king :  and 
Ordlaf  entered  upon  the  land,  "  because  it  was  his 
leen  that  Helmstan  sat  on :  that  he  could  not  for- 
feit 1."  A  similar  principle  prevailed  in  grants  for 
lives,  especially  where  ecclesiastical  corporations 
were  the  grantors  and  reversioners;  and  which, 
though  to  a  certain  extent  they  conveyed  estates 
of  bocland,  gave,  strictly  speaking,  leen  or  bene- 
ficiary tenures  ^.  But  as  the  clergy  were  not  always 
quite  sure  of  meeting  with  fair  treatment,  we  find 
them  not  unfrequently  introducing  into  their  instru- 
ments a  provision  that  no  forfeiture  shall  be  valid 
against  their  rights ;  this,  from  the  great  strictness 
with  which  the  provisions  of  a  book  or  charter  were 
always  construed,  and  in  general  from  the  fear  of 
violating  what  had  been  confirmed  by  the  signature 
of  the  cross  and  the  threat  of  eternal  punishment, 
may  have  had  some  effect.     In  such  cases  it  may 


'  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  328. 

2  Thus  Ealhfri«  bishop  of  Wmchester  (871-877)  making  a  grant  for 
lives  to  duke  Cu'Sred,  properly  calls  it  a  Isen :  "  EalferS  'j  Sa  higan  liab- 
baS  gelEened,"  etc.  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  1062.  They  reserved  ecclesiastical, 
but  no  secular  dues. 


S12  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

be  presumed  that  the  guilt  of  the  grantee  entirely 
cancelled  the  grant ;  the  remaining  lives,  if  any,  lo- 
sing the  advantage  which  they  derived  through  the 
grantee ;  forfeiture  really  taking  effect,  but  for  the 
benefit  of  the  grantor,  not  the  civil  power  i.  The 
tenant  of  Itenland,  who  by  his  services  acquired 
the  good  will  of  the  lord,  might  hope  to  have  his 
tenure  improved,  if  not  into  an  absolute  possession 
of  bocland,  yet  into  one  for  his  own  or  more  lives. 
In  a  translation  of  St.  Augustine  of  Hippo's  Soli- 
loquia,  attributed  like  so  many  other  things  to  Ml- 
fred  of  Wessex,  there  occurs  this  passage  ^ : 

"  But  it  pleaseth  every  man,  when  he  hath  built 
himself  some  cottage  upon  his  lord's  Isen,  with  his 
assistance,  for  a  while  to  take  up  his  rest  thereon, 
and  hunt,  and  fowl  and  fish,  and  in  divers  ways 
provide  for  himself  upon  the  Isen,  both  by  sea  and 

^  Oswald's  granta  generally  contain  a  special  clause  to  that  effect :  see 
Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  494, 495,  506,  507, 509,  511,  629, 531, 538, 540, 552. 

2  MS.  Gott.  Vitel.  A.  xv.  fol.  2.  "  Ac  telcne  man  lyst,  si'S'Sau  he 
sSnig  cotlif  on  his  hlafordes  Irene  mid  his  fultume  getimbred  hcef'S,1S8et 
he  hine  mote  hwilum  ^teron  gerestan,  •j  huntigan,  -j  fuglian  -j  fiscan, 
•j  his  on  gehwylicwisan  to  tSsere  Isenan  tilian,  seglSer  ge  on  see  ge  on 
lande,  o'S  otS  %ne  iyrst  ^e  he  bocland  -j  ^ce  yrfe  Jjurh  his  hlafordes 
miltse  ge-eamige."  Whether  land  so  put  out  was  called  earningland, 
I  will  not  affirm;  but  at  the  close  of  a  grant  for  three  lives  I  find  this 
memorandum  :  "  Two  of  the  lives  have  fallen  in ;  then  Eadwulf  took 
it,  and  granted  it  to  whomsover  he  would  as  earningland."  God.  Dipl. 
No.  679.  Ootlif  seems  in  other  passages  to  denote  small  estates  not 
necessarily  on  Isen.  The  Saxon  Ghronicle,  an.  963,  for  example  uses 
that  term  of  the  lands  which  ^Sl'Selwold  gave  to  Ely,  after  purchasing 
them  of  the  king.  This  it  is  clear  he  could  not  have  done,  had  they 
been  on  any  person's  Isen.  Were  they  not  perhaps  settlements  of  un- 
licensed squatters  who  had  built  their  cottages  on  the  king's  waste  and 
deserted  lands — the  old  Mark — in  the  isle  of  Ely  and  Gambridgeshire  ? 
But  again  the  Ghronicle,  an.  1001,  speaks  of  the  ham  or  viU  at  Walt- 
ham,  and  many  other  cotlifs. 


CH.  XI.]  L^'NLAND.  313 

land,  until  the  time  when  by  his  lord's  compassion 
he  can  earn  a  bocland  and  eternal  inheritance." 

And  instances  occur  in  more  formal  documents. 
In  977,  Oswald,  Archbishop  of  York  and  Bishop 
of  Worcester,  made  a  grant  of  three  hides  at  Ted- 
dington,  for  three  lives,  to  Eadric  his  thane,  with  re- 
version to  Worcester :  "  Now  there  are  three  hides 
of  this  land  which  Archbishop  Oswald  booketh  to 
Eadric  his  thane,  both  near  town  and  from  town, 
even  as  he  before  held  them  as  iBenland^." 

In  another  grant  of  the  same  prelate,  between 
972-992,  made'  to  his  client  ^fsige,  of  a  dwelling 
in  Worcester  city,  for  three  lives,  he  adds,  "  Also 
we  write  [or  book]  to  him  the  croft  appurtenant  to 
that  tenement,  which  lies  to  the  east  of  Wulfsige's 
croft ;  that  he  may  hold  it  in  as  large  measure,  for 
bocland,  as  he  before  held  it  for  Isenland^." 

In  977,  the  same  convent  at  Worcester  booked 
three  hides  for  three  lives  to  the  monk  Wynsige, 
even  as  his  father  had  held  them^;  and  in  978-992, 
they  gave  to  Goding  the  priest,  also  for  three  lives, 
the  tenement  which  he  himself  had  without  the  city 
gate*.  In  both  these  cases  Isen  appears  to  have 
been  converted  into  estate  for  successive  lives. 

Where  there  was  Isen,  there  could  properly  be  no 
book,  because  the  possession  of  the  charter  itself 
was  frima  fade  evidence  (indeed  nearly  conclusive 
evidence)  in  favour  of  the  holder.  Hence,  where 
from  any  circumstance  the  books  were  withheld, 
the  tenant  had  only  a  Isen  :  this  was  the  case  with 

1  Cod.  Dipl.  Noa.  617, 651.  ^  Ibid.  No.  679. 

"  Ibid.  No.  616.  *  Ibid.  No.  683. 


814  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  r. 

Helmstan's  estates  mentioned  above  :  he  had  depo- 
sited his  charters  with  Ordlaf  as  a  security  on  an 
occasion  when  this  duke  helped  him  to  make  oath 
to  some  property.  On  Helmstan's  felony,  Ordlaf 
seized  the  land  to  himself,  and  the  document  from 
which  we  learn  this  is  obviously  his  appeal  to  Ml- 
fred's  son  and  successor,  against  an  attempt  to  dis- 
turb Helmstan's  original  title,  under  a  judgment 
given  by  JSlfred.  Nor  was  it  unusual  for  books  to 
be  thus  retained  as  securities,  by  which  the  tenant 
having  only  a  Isen  could  be  evicted,  if  not  at  plea- 
sure, at  least  by  legal  process  ^.  And  the  same  re- 
marks apply  to  a  very  common  mode  of  disposing 
of  estates,  where  the  clergy  were  grantees.  Either 
to  avoid  litigation  with  justly  exasperated  heirs, 
or  to  escape  from  the  commands  of  various  synods, 
the  clergy  used  to  take  deeds  of  gift  from  living 
tenants,  impounding  the  books  of  course,  and  lea- 
ving the  life-interest  only  to  the  owner.  Such  an 
estate  in  technical  Latin  was  naxaed  praestaria ;  but 
it  was  obviously  a  Isen,  and  was  generally  charged 
with  recognitory  payments  ^. 

It  may  not  be  uninteresting,  before  I  close  this 
chapter,  to  give  some  examples  of  the  gafol  or  rent 
paid  upon  lands  whether  held  for  lives,  or  as,  more 
strictly,  leenland.  They  are  extremely  valuable  from 
the  insight  they  give  into  the  details  of  social  life, 
and  the  daily  habits  of  our  forefathers. 


''■  See  tlie  case  of  tte  estate  at  Cowling,  in  the  trial  tetween  Queen 
Eadgyfu  and  Goda.     Cod.  Dipl.  No.  499. 

2  Examples  of  this  are  found  in  Ood.  Dipl.  Nos.  429,  754, 1351, 
1354,  §  6. 


CH.  XI.]  LJE'NLAND,  315 

Twenty  hides  of  land  at  Sempringham  were 
leased  by  Peterborough  to  Wulfred  for  two  lives, 
on  condition  of  his  getting  its  freedom,  and  that 
of  Sleaford  (both  in  Lincolnshire) :  upon  this  estate 
the  following  yearly  rent  was  reserved.  First,  to 
the  monastery :  two  tons  of  bright  ale,  two  oxen, 
fit  for  slaughter,  two  mittan  or  measures  of  Welsh 
ale,  and  six  hundred  loaves.  Secondly  to  the  ab- 
bot's private  estate :  one  horse,  thirty  shillings  of 
silver  or  half  a  pound,  one  night's  pastus,  fifteen 
mittan  of  bright  and  five  of  Welsh  ale,  fifteen  ses- 
ters  of  mild  ale  i. 

A  little  earlier,  Oswulf,  a  duke  in  Kent,  devised 
lands  to  Christchurch  Canterbury,  which  he  charged 
with  annual  doles  to  the  poor  upon  his  anniver- 
sary. Forty  hides  at  Stanhampstead  were  to  find 
one  hundred  and  twenty  loaves  of  wheat,  thirty 
loaves  of  fine  wheat^,  one  fat  ox  and  four  sheep, 
two  flitches  of  bacon,  five  geese,  ten  hens,  and  ten 
pounds  of  cheese.  If  it  fell  on  a  fast-day,  however, 
there  was  to  be  (instead  of  the  meat)  a  loey  of 
cheese,  and  fish,  butter,  eggs  ad  libitum.  Moreover, 
thirty  ambers  of  good  Welsh  ale,  on  the  footing  of 
fifteen  mittan,  and  one  mitta  of  honey  (perhaps  to 
make  into  a  drink)  or  two  of  wine.    From  his  land 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  267.  an.  852.  The  mitta  and  other  measures  are 
unknown.  However  the  sester  of  com  was  one  horse-load  (Hen.  Hunt, 
lib.  vi.  an.  1044) ;  quesre,  What  he  could  carry,  or  what  he  could  draw  ? 
In  the  middle  of  the  eleventh  century,  the  sester  of  honey  was  thirty- 
two  ounces.     Cod.  Dipl.  No.  950. 

^  They  are  called  clean.  These  probably  were  made  of  flour  passed 
oftener  through  the  boulter.  The  common  loaf  had  no  doubt  still  much 
bran  in  it,  and  answers  to  our  seconds.  But  it  is  probable  that  bread 
was  generally  made  of  rye. 


316  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  r. 

at  Burnan  were  to  issue  one  thousand  loaves,  and 
one  thousand  raised  loaves  or  cakes ;  and  the  monks 
themselves  vpere  to  find  one  hundred  and  twenty 
more  of  the  latter^. 

Werhard  gave  two  juga  or  geoc  of  land  to  Can- 
terbury. The  rent  of  one  at  Lambaham  was  forty 
pensas  (weys)  of  cheese,  or  an  equivalent  in  lambs 
and  wool ;  the  other,  at  North  wood,  rendered  one 
hundred  and  twenty  measures,  which  the  English 
call  ambers,  of  salt-. 

Lufe,  in  832,  charged  the  inheritors  and  assigns 
of  her  land  at  Mundlingham,  ,with  the  following 
yearly  payment  to  Canterbury,  for  ever ;  that  is  to 
say  :  Sixty  ambers  of  malt,  one  hundred  and  fifty 
loaves,  fifty  white  loaves,  one  hundred  and  twenty 
alms-loaves,  one  ox,  one  hog  and  four  wethers, 
two  weys  of  bacon  and  cheese,  one  mitta  of  honey, 
ten  geese  and  twenty  hens  ^. 

In  835,  Abba,  a  reeve  in  Kent,  charged  his  heirs 
with  a  yearly  payment  to  Folkstone,  of  fifty  ambers 
of  malt,  six  ambers  of  groats  (gruta  ■?),  three  weys 
of  bacon  and  cheese,  four  hundred  loaves,  one 
ox,  and  six  sheep,  besides  an  allowance  or  stipend 
in  money  to  the  priests^.     And  Heregy^,  his  wife, 

1  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  226.  an.  805-831.  The  sufl-loaf  whicli  I  have  trans- 
lated raised,  is  I  presume  derived  from  the  word  strfflare,  and  was  pro- 
bably carefully  leavened.  We  unhappily  have  not  the  Anglosaxon  re- 
ceipt for  beer ;  but  I  presume  the  text  implies  that  fifteen  mittav, 
whatever  they  were,  of  malt  were  to  go  to  the  amber.  Oswulf  s  cha- 
racter for  splendid  liberality  will  induce  us  to  believe  that  he  meant 
the  monks  to  have  an  Audit  ale  of  their  own,  as  well  as  our  worthy 
Fellows  of  Trinity  College  Cambridge. 

2  Cod.  Dip].  No.  220.  an.  832. 

3  Ibid.  No.  231.  «  Ibid.  No.  236. 


CH.  XI.]  L^'NLAND.  317 

further  burthened  her  land  at  Challock  with  pay- 
ments to  Canterbury,  amounting  to :  thirty  ambers 
of  ale,  three  hundred  loaves,  fifty  of  them  white, 
one  wey  of  bacon  and  cheese,  one  old  ox,  four 
wethers,  and  one  hog,  or  six  wethers,  six  geese 
and  ten  hens,  one  sester  of  honey,  one  of  butter, 
and  one  of  salt ;  and  if  her  anniversary  should  fall 
in  winter,  she  added  thirty  wax-lights  ^. 

In  902,  Bishop  Denewulf  leased  fifteen  hides  of 
church-land  at  Eblesburn  to  his  relative  Beornwulf 
for  forty-five  shillings  a  year,  with  liberty  to  Beorn- 
wulf's  children  to  continue  the  lease.  One  shilling 
(sixty  of  which  went  to  the  pound)  is  so  very  small 
a  rent  for  ten  acres,  that  we  must  either  suppose 
the  land  to  have  been  unusually  bad,  or  Beornwulf's 
connection  with  the  bishop  much  in  his  favour  ^. 
He  was  also  to  aid  in  cyricbot,  and  pay  the  cyric- 
sceat.  About  the  same  time  Denewulf  leased  forty 
hides  at  Alresford  to  one  Alfred,  at  the  old  rent  of 
three  pounds  per  annum,  or  four  shillings  and  a  half 
per  hide.  He  was  however  also  to  pay  church-shot, 
the  amount  of  which  is  not  stated,  and  to  do  church- 
shot-worlc,  and  find  men  to  the  bishop's  reaping  and 
hunting  ^. 

Between  901-909,  king  Eadweard  booked  twenty 
hides  of  land  to  Bishop  Denewulf.  The  payments 
reserved  have  been  already  mentioned :  instead  of 
going  to  the  king  as  gafol  or  rent,  they  were  to 
be  expended  in  an  anniversary  feast  on  founder's 

'  Cod  Dipl,  No.  235.  =  Ibid.  No.  1079. 

^  Ibid.  No.  1086.     In  both  cases  the  rent  is  called  gafol. 


818  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  r. 

day.  I  have  already  stated  that  this  may  be  the 
old  charge  on  folcland :  it  was  a  grant  from  the 
monks  to  the  bishop,  probably  negotiated  by  Ead- 
weard.  All  parties  were  satisfied :  the  monks  pro- 
bably got  from  the  land  as  much  as  they  could  ex- 
pect from  any  other  tenant,  or  what,  if  folcland, 
they  would  themselves  have  had  to  pay ;  the  bishop 
got  the  land  into  his  own  hands,  to  dispose  of  at  his 
pleasure,  and  the  king  was  rewarded  for  interven- 
tion with  all  the  benefits  to  be  derived  on  his  anni- 
versary from  the  prayers  of  the  grateful  fathers  at 
Winchester. 

At  the  close  of  the  ninth  century,  Werfri'S  bishop 
of  Worcester  claimed  land  under  the  following  cir- 
cumstances. Milred  a  previous  bishop  had  granted 
an  estate  in  Sopbury,  on  condition  that  it  was  to 
be  always  held  by  a  clergyman,  and  never  by  a 
layman,  and  that  if  no  clergyman  could  be  found 
in  the  grantee's  family,  it  should  revert  to  the  see. 
By  degrees  the  family  of  the  grantee  established 
themselves  in  the  possession,  but  without  perform- 
ing the  condition.  At  length  WerfriS  impleaded 
their  chief  Eadno'S,  who  admitted  the  wrong  and 
promised  to  find  a  clergyman.  The  family  however 
all  refused  to  enter  into  holy  orders.  Eadno'S  then 
obtained  the  intercession  of  ^'Selred  duke  of  Mer- 
cia,  the  lady  ^^elflsed,  and  ^^elno^  duke  of 
Somerset ;  and  by  their  persuasion,  Werfri'S  (in  de- 
fiance of  his  predecessor's  charter)  sold  the  land  to 
EadnoS  for  forty  mancuses,  reserving  a  yearly  rent 
of  fifteen  shillings,  and  a  vestment  (or  perhaps  some 


CH.  M.]  L^'NLAND.  319 

kind  of  hanging)  to  be  delivered  at  the  episcopal 
manor  of  Tetbury^. 

Ealdwulf  bishop  of  Worcester  leased  forty  acres 
of  land  and  a  fishery  for  three  liv^s  to  Leofena'S, 
on  condition  that  they  delivered  yearly  fifteen  sal- 
mon, and  those  good  ones  too,  during  the  bishop's 
residence  in  Worcester,  on  Ashwednesday^. 

Eadric  gafeled  (gafelian),  i.  e.  paid  yearly  rent  or 
gafol  for  two  hides  vpith  half  a  pound,  or  thirty  shil- 
lings, and  a  gave,  a  w^ord  I  do  not  understand^. 

In  835,  the  Abbess  Cyneware  gave  land  to  Hun- 
berht,  a  duke,  on  condition  that  he  paid  a  gablum, 
gafol  or  rent  of  three  hundred  shillings  in  lead 
yearly  to  Christchurch  Canterbury*. 

The  ceorlas  or  dependent  freemen  who  were  set- 
tled upon  the  land  of  Hurstbourn  in  the  days  of 
lifted,  had  the  following  rents  to  pay ;  many  of 
these  are  labour  rents,  many  arise  out  of  the  land 
itself,  viz.  are  part  of  the  produce. 

From  each  hide,  at  the  autumnal  equinox,  forty 
pence.  Further  they  were  to  pay,  six  church- 
mittan  of  ale,  and  three  sesters  or  horseloads  of  white 
wheat.  Out  of  their  own  time  they  were  to  plough 
three  acres,  and  sow  them  with  their  own  seed,  to 
house  the  produce,  to  pay  three  pounds  of  gafol- 
barley,  to  mow  half  an  acre  of  gafolmead  and 
stack  the  hay,  to  split  four  fo^er  orloads  of  gafol- 
wood  and  stack  it,  to  make  sixteen  rods  of  gafol- 


1  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  327. 

''  Ibid.  No.  695.    I  have  rendered  "forme  fsestenes  daeg"  as  if  it  were 
Caput  jejtinii. 
=  Ibid.  No.  699.  «  Ibid.  No.  1043. 


320  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

hedging!.  At  Easter  they  were  further  to  pay  two 
ewes  and  lambs,  two  young  sheep  being  held  equiva- 
lent to  one  old  one :  these  they  were  to  wash  and 
shear  out  of  their  own  time.  Lastly,  every  week  they 
were  to  do  any  work  which  might  be  required  of 
them,  except  during  the  three  weeks,  at  Christmas, 
Easter  and  the  Gangdays^. 

The  following  .customs  and  payments  are  re- 
corded in  various  manors :  some  of  the  words  I 
cannot  translate.  "  In  Dyddanham  there  are  thirty 
hides ;  nine  of  these  are  inland  (demesne),  twenty- 
one  are  let^.  In  Street  are  twelve  hides,  twenty- 
seven  yards  of  gafoUand ;  and  on  the  Severn  there 
are  thirty  cytweras*.  In  Middleton  are  five  hides, 
fourteen  yards  of  gafoUand,  fourteen  cytweras  on 
the  Severn,  and  two  haecweras  on  the  Way.  At 
Kingston  there  are  five  hides,  thirteen  yards  of  ga- 
foUand, and  one  hide  above  the  ditch  which  is  now 
also  gafoUand,  and  that  without  the  ham^,  is  still 
in  part  inland,  in  part  let  out  on  rent  to  the  ship- 
wealas^ :  to  Kingston  belong  twenty-one  cytweras 
on  the  Severn,  and  twelve  on  the  Way.     In  Bi- 


'  Gafolbaere,  gafolmEed,  gafolwidu,  gafoltiining.  The  Saxons  knew 
well  enough  that  all  these  things  were  rent ;  and  all  laud  put  out  upon 
rent  of  any  kind  was  gafoUand,  gafolcund  or  gavelkind  land. 

^  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1077. 

^  Geset  land  I  have  rendered  by  set  out  or  let ;  as  land  is  afterwards 
said  to  be  set  out  to  rent,  to  gafole  gesett. 

*  The  cytweras  and  hseoweras  were  weirs  or  places  for  taking  fish, 
but  I  cannot  distinguish  their  nature.  The  names  would  induce  us  to 
think  the  former  were  shaped  like  a  modem  eel-trap,  the  latter  were 
formed  with  a  slat  or  hatch. 

'  An  enclosure  on  the  water.     See  Cod.  Dipl.  iii.  p.  xxvii. 

'  Welsh  navigators. 


CH.  XI.]  L^'NLAND.  321 

shopstun  are  three  hides,  and  fifteen  cytweras  on 
the  Way :  in  Lancawet  are  three  hides,  two  heec- 
weras  on  the  Way,  and  two  cytweras. 

"Throughout  that  land  each  yardland  pays  twelve 
pence,  and  four  alms-pence :  at  every  weir  within  the 
thirty  hides,  every  second  fish  belongs  to  the  land- 
lord, besides  every  uncommon  fish  worth  having, 
sturgeon  or  porpoise,  herring  or  sea-fish ;  and  no 
one  may  sell  any  fish  for  money  when  the  lord  is 
on  the  land,  until  he  have  had  notice  of  the  same. 
In  Dyddenham  the  services  are  very  heavy.  The 
geneat  must  work,  on  the  land  or  off  the  land,  as 
he  is  commanded,  and  ride  and  carry,  lead  load 
and  drive  drove,  and  do  many  things  beside.  The 
gebiir  must  do  his  rights ;  he  must  plough  half  an 
acre  for  week-work,  and  himself  pay  the  seed  in 
good  condition  into  the  lord's  barn  for  church-shot, 
at  all  events  from  his  own  barn :  towards  weriold  ^, 
forty  large  trees ^  or  one  load  of  rods;  oxei^igeocu 
build ^,  three  ehban  close:  of  field  enclosure  fifteen 
rods,  or  let  him  ditch  fifteen ;  and  let  him  ditch  one 
rod  of  burg-enclosure ;  reap  an  acre  and  a  half,  mow 
half  an  acre ;  work  at  other  works  ever  according 
to  their  nature.  Let  him  pay  sixpence  after  Easter, 
half  a  sester  of  honey  at  Lammas,  six  sesters  of 
malt  at  Martinmas,  one  clew  of  good  net  yarn.  In 
the  same  land  it  is  customary  that  he  who  hath 
seven  swine  shall  give  three,  and  so  forth  always 

'  Werbold,  the  construction  of  the  weir  or  place  for  catching  fish. 
"  M»ra,  of  large  wood  in  opposition  to  rods  ? 
^  Let  him  build  eight  yohes  in  the  -weir,  and  close  three   ehlan. 
What  these  geocu  and  ebhan  are,  I  cannot  say. 

VOL.  I.  T 


322  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  tenth,  and  nevertheless  pay  for  common  of  mast- 
ing, if  mast  there  be^." 

Unquestionably  these  are  heavy  dues,  and  much 
aggravated  by  the  circumstances  of  the  estate  or 
yardland  being  but  small,  the  tenant  born  free,  and 
some  of  the  services  uncertain.  I  shall  conclude  this 
chapter  with  a  few  lines  translated  from  that  most 
valuable  document  called  "  Kectitudines  singularum 
personarum  ^ ; "  as  far  as  the  cases  of  the  Geneat, 
Cotsetla  and  Gebur  are  concerned^.  First  of  the 
Geneat  or  comrade. 

"  The  Geneat-right  is  various,  according  to  the 
custom  of  the  land.  In  some  places  he  must  pay 
landgafol,  and  a  grass-swine  yearly ;  ride  and  carry, 
lead  load;  work  and  feed  his  lord*;  reap  and  mow; 
hew  deer-hedge  and  hold  scete^ ;  build  and  enclose 
the  burh  [or  mansion]  ;  make  new  roads  to  the 
farm ;  pay  church-shot  and  alms-fee ;  hold  head- 
ward  and  horseward ;  go  on  errand,  far  or  near, 
whithersoever  he  is  directed."  This  is  compara- 
tively free,  and  it  is  only  to  be  regretted  that  we 
do  not  know  what  amount  of  land  in  general  could 
be  obtained  at  such  a  rent.  We  next  come  to  the 
Cotsetlan,  whom  vElfred  in  a  passage  already  cited 
states  to  be  on  Isenland,  and  who  are  obviously  poor 
freemen,  suflFered  to  settle  on  the  lord's  estate. 

"  The  Cotsettler's  right  is  according  to  the  cus- 
tom. In  some  places  he  must  work  for  the  lord,  every 

>  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  461.  =  Thorpe,  i.  432. 

'  The  ancient  Latin  version  calls  them  Villanus,  Cotsetle  and  Gehur. 

*  FeoTrai&iijJirmare;  give  so  much  napastus. 

'  Help  to  make  park-paling,  and  perhaps  keep  ■watch  for  game. 


CH.  XI.]  L^'NLAND.  323 

Monday  throughout  the  year ;  or  three  days  every 
week  in  harvest ;  he  need  pay  no  landgafol.  He 
ought  to  have  five  acres ;  more  if  it  be  the  custom. 
And  if  it  be  less,  it  is  all  too  little,  for  his  service 
is  often  called  upon.  He  must  pay  his  hearth-penny 
on  holy  Thursday  ^  as  it  behoves  every  freeman  to 
do ;  and  he  must  acquit  ^  his  lord's  inland,  on  sum- 
mons, at  seaward  and  at  the  king's  deer-hedge  ^ ; 
and  at  such  things  as  are  in  his  competence :  and 
let  him  pay  his  church-shot  at  Martinmas. 

"  The  customs  of  the  Gebiir  are  very  various ;  in 
some  places  they  are  heavy,  but  in  some  moderate. 
In  some  places  it  is  usual  that  he  shall  do  two  days 
week-work,  whatever  work  may  be  commanded  him, 
every  week  throughout  the  year  ;  and  three  days 
week-work  in  harvest,  and  three  from  Candlemas 
to  Easter.  If  he  carries'*,  he  need  not  work  him- 
self as  long  as  his  horse  is  out.  He  must  pay  at 
Michaelmas  ten  gafol-pence,  and  at  Martinmas 
twenty-three  sesters  of  barley,  and  two  hens  ^ ;  at 

^  Ascension  Day.  Observe  that  tlie  Cotsetlais  distinctly  asserted  to 
be  free. 

-  "Werige  bis  blafordes,"  etc.;  that  is,  perform  for  bis  lord,  tbe 
duty  of  coast-guard,  and  attending  tbe  king's  bant :  from  wbicb  it 
follows  tbat,  wbere  tbere  was  no  special  exemption,  tbese  services  could 
be  demanded  of  tbe  lord :  that  is  in  case  of  folcland.  The  old  Latin 
translates  werian  by  acquietare,  which  I  have  adopted. 

'  Either  in  repairing  tbe  park-paling,  or  in  service  during  the  hunt. 

*  Aferian,  auerian, /««'<  averagimn,  averiat. 

'  This  seems  an  immense  amount  of  barley,  but  the  Saxon  clearly 
reads  as  I  have  translated.  The  old  Latin  version  has,  "  Dare  debet  in 
festo  Sancti  Michaelis  x.  den.  de  gablo,  et  Saucti  Martini  die  xxiii  et 
sestarium  ordei  et  ii  gallinas."  Twenty-three  pence  at  Martinmas  is 
a  considerable  sum  ;  however  as  a  sestcr  of  corn  must  even  in  ordi- 
nary years  have  been  worth  quite  that  sum,  it  is  more  reasonable  to 
follow  the  Latin  than  the  Saxon. 

t2 


324  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Easter  one  young  sheep  or  two  pence ;  and  he  shall 
lie  out  from  Martinmas  till  Easter  at  the  lord's 
fold  1 ;  and  from  the  time  when  the  plough  is  first 
put  in  till  Martinmas,  he  shall  plough  one  acre 
every  week,  and  make  ready  the  seed  in  the  lord's 
barn :  mof eover  three  acres  on  request,  and  two  of 
grass-ploughing  2.  If  he  require  more  grass,  let  him 
earn  it  on  such  conditions  as  he  may.  For  his 
rent-ploughing  [gafolyr'S]  he  shall  plough  three 
acres  and  sow  them  from  his  own  barn ;  and  pay  his 

'  The  fold  was  often  distant  from  the  homestead,  and  required  care- 
ful watching,  especially  during  the  dark  winter  months.  Sheep  alone 
were  not  folded,  but  oxen,  cows,  and  particularly  mares  :  hrytSrafald, 
ciiafald,  stodfald.  This  system  may  he  still  seen  in  full  force  in  Hun- 
gary ;  and  we  may  add  that,  in  the  article  of  horse  and  cattle  stealing, 
the  Hungarian  presents  a  very  marked  likeness  to  the  Anglosaxon. 
While  reading  these  services,  one  can  hardly  get  rid  of  the  notion  that 
one  is  studying  the  description  of  a  Hungarian  Session. 

^  "  Tres  acras  precum  et  duas  de  herbagio :  t>reo  seceras  to  b^ne  -j 
twa  to  gsersySe."  If  requested  he  shall  do  three  acres ;  but  only  two 
if  a  meadow  is  to  be  broken  up  ?  This  is  always  much  harder  work 
than  ploughing  on  old  arable.  But  it  is  difficult  to  reconcile  this  with 
the  next  sentence.  The  Saxon  says,  "  G-if  he  maran  gserses  bebyrfe,  ear- 
nige  'Saes  swa  him  man  Jjafige : "  the  Latin,  "  Si  plus  indigeat  herbagio, 
ardbit  proinde  sicut  ei  permittatur."  From  the  word  arabit,  Thorpe 
suggests  erige  instead  of  earnige.  The  two  readings  are  however 
consistent  if  we  consider  the  expression  gsersyrKe  as  having  no  con- 
nection with  the  gsers  of  the  following  sentence.  I  suppose  the  meaning 
to  be  this :  on  extraordinary  occasions,  he  might  be  called  upon  by  the 
lord  to  plough  three  acres  instead  of  one,  or  in  old  meadow-land,  two 
acres.  If  now  he  himself  should  want  more  grass-land  than  he  already 
possessed,  he  might  make  a  bargain  with  the  lord,  and  earn  it  by  this 
labour  with  the  plough.  He  was  bound  to  give  one  day's  ploughing 
every  week  from  the  commencement  of  the  ploughing  season  till  the 
11th  of  November  :  but  on  pressing  emergency,  and  on  request  of  the 
lord,  he  must  give  three  days  (for  an  acre  a  day  was  the  just  calculation) 
or  in  old  meadow  two.  If  his  services  at  the  plough  were  stiU  farther 
required,  he  was  to  make  a  bargain  with  his  lord  ;  and  a  common  case 
is  supposed,  viz.  that  he  required  more  grass-land  than  he  had.  In  this 
way  all  seems  intelligible. 


CH.  XI.]  L^'NLAND.  325 

hearth-penny ;  and  two  and  two  shall  feed  one  stag- 
hound  ;  and  each  gebiir  shall  give  six  loaves  to  the 
inswan  [that  is,  the  swain  or  swineherd  of  the  de- 
mesne] when  he  drives  his  herds  to  the  mast.  In 
the  same  land  where  these  conditions  prevail,  the 
gebur  has  a  right,  towards  first  stocking  his  land, 
to  receive  two  oxen,  one  cow  and  six  sheep,  and 
seven  acres  in  his  yard  of  land,  ready  sown.  After 
the  first  year  let  him  do  all  the  customs  which  be- 
long to  him  ;  and  he  is  to  be  supplied  with  tools  for 
his  work,  and  furniture  for  his  house.  When  he 
dies,  let  his  lord  look  after  what  he  leaves. 

"  This  land-law  prevails  in  some  lands ;  but,  as  I 
have  said,  in  some  places  it  is  heavier,  in  others 
lighter ;  seeing  that  the  customs  of  all  lands  are 
not  alike.  In  some  places  the  gebur  must  pay 
honey-gafol,  in  some  meat-gafol,  in  some  ale- 
gafol.  Let  him  that  holds  the  shire  take  heed  to 
know  always  what  is  the  old  arrangement  about 
the  land,  and  what  the  custom  of  the  country !  " 

I  can  only  add  the  expression  of  my  opinion,  that 
a  careful  study  of  the  condition  of  the  peasantry  in 
the  eastern  parts  of  Europe  will  assist  in  throwing 
much  light  upon  these  ancient  social  arrangements 
in  this  country.  Hard  as  in  some  respects  the  con- 
dition of  the  dependent  freeman  appears,  it  must 
be  borne  in  mind  that  the  possession  of  land  was 
indispensably  necessary  to  life,  unless  he  was  to  be- 
come an  absolute  serf  In  a  country  that  has  little 
more  manufacture  than  the  simple  necessities  of 
individual  households  require,  no  wealth  of  raw 
material  and  consequently  little  commerce, — where 


326  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

households  rejoice  in  a  sort  of  self-supporting,  self- 
sufBcient  autonomy,  and  the  means  of  internal  com- 
munication are  imperfect, — land  and  its  produce  are 
the  only  wealth ;  land  is  the  only  means  whereby 
to  live.  But  the  Saxon  peasant  knew  his  position : 
it  was  a  hard  one,  but  he  bore  it :  he  worked  early 
and  late,  but  he  worked  cheerfully,  and  amidst  all 
his  toils  there  is  no  evidence  of  his  ever  having 
shot  at  his  landlord  from  behind  a  stone  wall  or  a 
hedge. 


827 


CHAPTER  XII. 

HEATHENDOM. 

An  account  of  the  Saxons  which  should  entirely  ex- 
clude the  peculiarities  of  their  heathendom,  would 
be  deficient  in  an  important  degree.  Religion  and 
law  are  too  nearly  allied,  particularly  in  early  pe- 
riods, for  us  to  neglect  either,  in  the  consideration 
of  national  institutions.  The  immediate  dependence 
of  one  upon  the  other  we  may  not  be  able  to  show 
in  satisfactory  detail ;  but  we  may  be  assured  that 
the  judicial  forms  are  always  in  near  connexion 
with  the  cult,  and  that  this  is  especially  the  case  at 
times  when  the  judicial  and  priestly  functions  are 
in  the  hands  of  the  same  class. 

The  Saxons  were  not  without  a  system  of  reli- 
gion, long  before  they  heard  of  Christianity,  nor 
should  we  be  justified  in  asserting  that  religion  to 
have  been  without  moral  influence  upon  the  indi- 
vidual man  in  his  family  and  social  relations.  Who 
shall  dare  to  say  that  the  high-thoughted  barbarian 
did  not  derive  comfort  in  afliiction,  or  support  in 
difficulty,  from  the  belief  that  the  gods  watched 
over  him, — that  he  did  not  bend  in  gratitude  for  the 
blessings  they  conferred, — that  he  was  not  guided 
and  directed  in  the  daily  business  of  life  by  the  con- 


S28  THE  SAJ5:0NS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

viction  of  his  responsibility  to  higher  powers  than 
any  which  he  recognized  in  the  Avorld  around  him'? 
There  has  been,  and  yet  is,  religion  without  the 
pale  of  Christianity,  however  dim  and  meagre  and 
unsatisfactory  that  religion  may  appear  to  us  whom 
the  mercy  of  God  has  blessed  with  the  true  light  of 
the  Gospel.  Long  before  their  conversion,  all  the 
Germanic  nations  had  established  polities  and  states 
upon  an  enduring  basis, — upon  principles  which 
still  form  the  groundwork  and  stablest  foundation  of 
the  greatest  empires  of  the  world, — upon  principles 
which,  far  from  being  abrogated  by  Christianity, 
harmonize  with  its  purest  precepts.  They  who 
think  states  accidental,  and  would  eliminate  Provi- 
dence from  the  world,  may  attempt  to  reconcile  this 
truth  with  their  doctrine  of  barbarism ;  to  us  be  it 
permitted  to  believe  that,  in  the  scheme  of  an  all- 
wise  and  all-pervading  mercy,  one  condition  here 
below  may  be  the  fitting  preparation  for  a  higher ; 
and  that  even  Paganism  itself  may  sometimes  be 
only  as  the  twilight,  through  which  the  first  rays  of 
the  morning  sun  are  dimly  descried  in  their  pro- 
gress to  the  horizon.  Without  religion  never  was 
yet  state  founded,  which  could  endure  for  ages ; 
the  permanence  of  our  own  is  the  most  convincing 
proof  of  the  strong  foundations  on  which  the  mas- 
sive fabric,  from  the  first,  was  reared. 

The  business  of  this  chapter  is  with  the  heathen- 
dom of  the  Saxons ;  not  that  portion  of  it  which 
yet  subsists  among  us  in  many  of  our  most  che- 
rished superstitions,  some  of  which  long  lurked  in 
the  ritual  of  the  unreformed  church,  and  may  yet 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.  329 

lurk  in  the  habits  and  belief  of  many  Protestants ; 
but  that  which  was  the  acknowledged  creed  of  the 
Saxon,  as  it  was  of  other  Germanic  populations ; 
which  once  had  priests  and  altars,  a  ritual  and  ce- 
remonies, temples  and  sacrifices,  and  all  the  pomp 
and  power  of  a  church-establishment. 

The  proper  subjects  of  mythological  inquiry  are 
the  gods  and  godlike  heroes :  it  is  through  the  lat- 
ter— for  the  most  part,  forms  of  the  gods  them- 
selves— that  a  race  connects  itself  with  the  former. 
Among  the  nations  of  our  race  royalty  is  indeed 
iure  divino,  for  the  ruling  families  are  in  direct 
genealogical  descent  from  divinity,  and  the  posses- 
sion of  Woden's  blood  was  the  indispensable  con- 
dition of  kingship.  In  our  peculiar  system,  the 
vague  records  of  Tuisco,  the  earth-born  god  i,  and 
Man,  the  origin  and  founders  of  the  race,  have 
vanished ;  the  mystical  cosmogony  of  Scandinavia 
has  left  no  traces  among  us  ^ ;  but  we  have  neverthe- 
less a  mythological  scheme  which  probably  yielded 
neither  in  completeness  nor  imaginative  power  to 
those  of  the  German  or  the  Norwegian. 

In  the  following  pages  I  propose  to  take  into 
consideration,  first  the  Gods  and  Goddesses,  pro- 
perly so  called :  secondly,  the  Monsters  or  Titanic 
powers  of  our  old  creed :  thirdly,  the  intermediate 

'  "  Celebrant  carminibus  antiquis  ....  Tuisconem  deum  terra  editum 
et  filium  Mannum,  originem  gentis  conditoresque."  Germ.  ii.  So  sung 
the  earliest  Greets : 

avTtOeov  de  IleXao'yov  iv   v-^LKOfio'ia'iv  opecra-t 
yaia  fiiXmv  dverjKei/  tva  6vrjTwv  yevos  firj, 
^  There  is  no  better  account  of  this  than  Geijer  gives  in  his  History 
of  Sweden,  vol.  i.  passim. 


830  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i.' 

and  as  it  were  ministerial  beings :  and  lastly  the  god- 
born  and  heroic  personages  of  the  epopoea. 

The  prudence  or  the  contempt  of  the  earliest 
Saxon  Christians  has  left  but  sparing  record  of 
what  Augustine  and  his  brother  missionaries  over- 
threw. Incidental  notices  indeed  are  all  that  re- 
main in  any  part  of  Teutonic  Europe  ;  and  on  the 
continent,  as  well  as  in  England,  it  is  only  by  the 
collation  of  minute  and  isolated  facts, — often  pre- 
served to  us  in  popular  superstitions,  legends  and 
even  nursery  tales, — that  we  can  render  probable 
the  prevalence  of  a  religious  belief  identical  in  its 
most  characteristic  features  with  that  which  we 
know  to  have  been  entertained  in  Scandinavia.  Yet 
whatsoever  we  can  thus  recover,  proves  that,  in  all 
main  points,  the  faith  of  the  island  Saxons  was  that 
of  their  continental  brethren. 

It  will  readily  be  supposed  that  the  task  of  de- 
monstrating this  is  not  easy.  The  early  period 
at  which  Christianity  triumphed  in  England,  adds 
to  the  difficulties  which  naturally  beset  the  sub- 
ject. Norway,  Sweden  and  Denmark  had  entered 
into  public  relations  with  the  rest  of  Europe,  long 
before  the  downfall  of  their  ancient  creed :  here, 
the  fall  of  heathendom  and  the  commencement  of 
history  were  contemporaneous :  we  too  had  no 
Iceland  ^  to  offer  a  refuge  to  those  who  fled  from 
the  violent  course  of  a  conversion,  preached  sword 

^  Thus  was  Iceland  colonized,  by  men  wlio  would  neither  relinquish 
their  old  belief,  nor  submit  to  the  growing  power  of  a  king.  The  Old- 
saxons  had  no  such  place  of  refuge,  and  the  arms  of  Charlemagne  pre- 
vailed to  destroy  their  national  independence  and  their  religion  together. 


CH.  XII.]   -  HEATHENDOM.  331 

in  hand,  and  coupled  with  the  loss  of  political  inde- 
pendence ;  still  the  progress  of  the  new  faith  seems 
to  have  been  on  the  whole  easy  and  continuoas 
amongst  us;  and  though  apostasy  was  frequent, 
history  either  had  no  serious  struggle  to  record,  or 
has  wisely  and  prudently  concealed  it. 

In  dealing  with  this  subject,  we  can  expect  but 
little  aid  from  the  usual  sources  of  information. 
The  early  chroniclers  who  lived  in  times  Avhen  hea- 
thendom was  even  less  extinct  than  it  now  is,  and 
before  it  had  learnt  to  hide  itself  under  borrowed 
names,  would  have  shrunk  with  horror  from  the 
mention  of  what  to  them,  was   an  execrable  im- 
piety :    many  of    them    could    have  possessed  no 
knowledge  of  details  which  to  us  would  be  invalua- 
ble, and  no  desire  to  become  acquainted  with  them  : 
the  whole  business  of  their  life,  on  the  contrary,  was 
to  destroy  the  very  remembrance   that  such  things 
had  been,  to  avoid  everything  that  could  recall  the 
past,  or  remind  their  half-converted  neophytes  of 
the  creed  which  they  and  their  forefathers  had  held. 
It  is  obvious  that,  under  such  circumstances,  the 
greater  and  more  powerful  the  God,  the  more  dan- 
gerous would  he  continue  to  be,  the  more  sedu- 
lously would  all  mention  of  him  be  avoided   by 
those  who  had  relinquished  his  service  or  overthrown 
his  altars.     But  though  this  may  be  the   case  with 
the  principal  deities,  there  are  others  whose  power, 
though  unacknowledged,  is  likely  to  be  more  per- 
manent.    Long  after  the  formal  renunciation    of 
a  public   and  national  paganism,   the  family  and 
household  gods  retain  a  certain  habitual  influence. 


332 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 


and  continue— often  under  other  names,  nay  per- 
haps engrafted  on  another  creed— to  inform  the 
daily  life  of  a  people  who  are  still  unconsciously 
acted  upon  by  ancient  national  feelings.  A  spell  or 
a  popular  superstition  may  yet  recall  some  traces  of 
the  old  belief,  even  as  the  heathen  temple,  when 
purified  with  holy  water  and  dedicated  in  another 
name,  retained  the  holiness  which  had  at  first  been 
attached  to  the  site  of  its  foundation. 

What  Paulus  Diaconus,  Jonas  of  Bobbio,  Jor- 
nandes,  Adam  of  Bremen,  Alcuin,  Widukind,  and 
the  monks  of  St.  Gall,  assert  of  other  German 
races,  Beda  asserts  of  the  Anglosaxons  also,  viz. 
th-at  they  worshiped  idols  i,  idola,  simulacra  deo- 
rum  ;  and  this  he  aflfirms  not  only  upon  the  autho- 
rity of  his  general  informants  and  of  unbroken 
tradition,  but  of  Gregory  himself.  Upon  the  same 
authority  also  he  tells  us  that  the  heathen  were 
wont  to  sacrifice  many  oxen  to  their  gods^.     To 

^  What  Tacitus  says  of  the  Germans  (Germ,  ix.)  not  having  temples 
or  images  is  to  be  taken  with  great  caution.  It  is  clear  from  other 
passages  of  his  own  work  that  some  tribes  had  such,  even  in  his  time ; 
yet  if  rare  then,  they  may  easily  have  become  universal  in  the  course 
of  two  or  three  centuries,  particularly  among  those  tribes  whom  mili- 
tary service  or  commerce  had  gi-adually  rendered  familiar  with  the 
religious  rites  of  Rome. 

^  These  facts  are  stated  in  a  letter  from  Gregory  to  Mellitus,  in  the 
following  words  :  "  Cum  ergo  Deus  omnipotens  vos  ad  reverentissimum 
virum  fratrem  nostrum  Augustinum  episcopum  perduxerit,  di  cite  ei  quid 
diu  mecum  de  causa  Anglorum  cogitans  tractavi,  videlicet,  quia  fana 
idolorum  destrui  in  eadem  gente  minime  debeant ;  sed  ipsa,  quae  in  eis 
sunt,  idola  destruantur,  aqua  benedicta  fiat,  in  eisdem  fanis  aspergatur, 
altaria  construantur,  reliquiae  ponantur.  Quia,  si  fana  eadem  bene 
constructa  sunt,  necesse  est  ut  a  cultu  daemonum  in  obsequium  veri 
Dei  debeant  commutari ;  ut  dum  gens  ipsa  eadem  fana  sua  non  videt 
destrui,  de  corde  errorem  deponat,  et   Deum    verum    cognoscens  ae 


CH.  xu.]  HEATHENDOM.    IDOLS.  333 

Beda  himself  we  owe  the  information  that  Hre'Se 
and  Eostre,  two  Saxon  goddesses,  gave  their  names 
to  two  of  the  months ;  that  at  a  certain  season  cat- 
tle were  vowed,  and  at  another  season  cakes  were 
oifered  to  the  gods^.  From  him  also  we  learn  that 
upon  the  death  of  Seebeorht  in  Essex,  his  sons  re- 
stored the  worship  of  idols  in  that  kingdom  ^ ;  that 
Eadwini  of  Northumberland  offered  thanks  to  his 
deities  for  the  safe  delivery  of  his  queen  ^ ;  that 
Rfedwald  of  Eastanglia  sacrificed  victims  to  his 
gods*  ;  that,  on  occasion  of  a  severe  pestilence,  the 
people  of  Essex  apostatized  and  returned  to  their 
ancient  worship  s,  till  reconverted  by  Gearoman, 
under  whose  teachings  they  destroyed  or  deserted 
the  fanes  and  altars  they  had  made;  that  incan- 
tations and  spells  were  used  against  sickness  ^ ; 
that  certain  runic  charms  were  believed  capable  of 
breaking  the  bonds  of  the  captive  '' ;  that  Eorcen- 
berht  of  Kent  was  the  first  who  completely  put 
down  heathendom  in  his  kingdom,  and  destroyed 


adorans  ad  loca,  quae  consuevit,  familiarius  concurrat.  Et  quia  boves 
Solent  in  sacrifioio  daemonum  multos  occidere,  debet  eis  etiam  hac  de 
re  aliqua  solemnitas  immutari ;  ut  die  dedicationis,  vel  natalitii  sancto- 
rum martyrum,  quorum  illic  reliquiae  ponuntur,  tabemacula  sibi  circa 
easdem  aecoleaias,  quae  ex  fanis  commutatae  sunt,  de  ramis  arborum 
faciant,  et  religioais  conviviis  solemnitatem  celebrent,  nee  diabolo  iam 
animalia  immolent,  sed  ad  laudem  Dei  in  esu  suo  animalia  occidant,  et 
donatori  omnium  de  satietate  sua  gratias  referant ;  ut  dum  eis  aliqua 
exterius  gaudia  reservantur,  ad  interiora  gaudia  consentire  facilius  va- 
leant."     Bed.  H.  E.  i.  30. 

'  De  Natura  Rerum,  cap.  15.  ^  H.  E.  ii.  5. 

^  H.  E.  ii.  9.  *  H.  E.  ii.  15. 

'  "  Coeperunt  fana,  quae  derelicta  erant,  restaurare,  et  adorare  si- 
mulacra ;  quasi  per  haec  possent  a  mortalitate  defendi."    H.  E.  iii.  30. 

'  H.  E.  iv.  27.  '  H.  E.  iv.  22. 


334  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  idols  i ;  lastly  that  at  the  court  of  Eadwini  of 
Northumberland  there  was  a  chief  priest 2,  and,  as 
we  may  naturally  infer  from  this,  an  organized 
heathen  hierarchy. 

The  poenitentials  of  the  church  and  the  acts  of 
the  witenargemots  are  full  of  prohibitions  directed 
against  the  open  or  secret  practice  of  heathendom^; 
from  them  we  learn  that  even  till  the  time  of  Cnut, 
well-worship  and    tree-worship,  the   sanctification 
of  places,  spells,  philtres  and  witchcraft,  were  still 
common  enough  to  call  for  legislative  interference ; 
and  the  heavy  doom  of  banishment,  proclaimed 
against  their  upholders,  proves  how  deeply  rooted 
such  pagan  customs  were  in  the  minds  of  the  peo- 
ple.    Still  in  the  Ecclesiastical  History  of  Beda,  in 
the  various  works  which  in  later  times  were  founded 
upon  it  and  continued  it,  in  the  poenitentials  and 
confessionals  of  the  church,  in  the  acts  of  the  se- 
cular assemblies,  we  look  in  vain  for  the  sacred 
names  in  which  the  fanes  were  consecrated,  or  for 
even  the  slightest  hint  of  the  attributes  of  the  gods 
whose  idols  or  images  had  been  set  up.    Excepting 
the  cursory  mention  of  the  two  female  divinities  al- 
ready noticed,  and  one  or  two  almost  equally  rapid 
-  allusions  in  later  chronicles,  we  are  left  almost  en- 
tirely  without   direct   information   respecting   the 
tenants  of  the  Saxon  Pantheon.    There  are  however 
other  authorities,  founded  on  traditions  more  an- 


^  H.  E.  iii.  8.  Malmesbury  says  that  lie  destroyed  also  their  cliapels, 
"  saoella  deorum."    De  Gest.  Reg.  lib.  i.  §  11. 
^  H.  E.  ii.  13. 
^  See  these  collected  in  the  Appendix  at  the  end  of  this  volume. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    WO 'DEN.  335 

cient  than  Beda  himself,  from  which  we  derive  more 
copious,  if  not  more  definite  accounts.  First  among 
these  are  the  genealogies  of  the  Anglosaxon  kings : 
these  contain  a  multitude  of  the  ancient  gods,  re- 
duced indeed  into  family  relations,  and  entered  in 
the  grades  of  a  pedigree,  but  still  capable  of  identi- 
fication with  the  deities  of  the  North  and  of  Ger- 
many. In  this  relation  we  find  Woden,  Bgeldseg, 
Geat,  Wig,  and  Frea.  The  days  of  the  week,  also  de- 
dicated to  gods,  supply  us  further  with  the  names  of 
Tiw,  Dunor,  Fricge  and  Ssetere ;  and  the  names  of 
places  in  all  parts  of  England  attest  the  wide  di- 
spersion of  their  worship.  These,  as  well  as  the 
names  of  plants,  are  the  admitted  signs  by  which 
we  recognize  the  appellations  of  the  Teutonic  gods. 

1.  WO'DEN,  in  Old-norse  0]:INN,  in  Old-ger- 
man  WUOTAN.— The  royal  family  of  every  An- 
glosaxon kingdom,  without  exception,  traces  its 
descent  from  Woden  through  some  one  or  other  of 
those  heroes  or  demigods  who  are  familiar  to  us 
in  the  German  and  Scandinavian  traditions  ^.     But 

'  Roger  of  Wendover  appears  however  to  have  made  a  distinction, 
which  I  do  not  remember  to  have  found  in  any  other  author,  in  the 
case  of  ^Ui  of  Sussex.  He  says  :  "  Wodenus  igitur  ex  antiquorum 
prosapia  Germanorum  originem  ducens,  post  mortem  inter  deos  trans- 
latus  est;  quem  veteres  pro  deo  oolentes,  dedicaverunt  ei  quartam  fe- 
riam,  quam  de  nomine  eius  Wodeneaday,  id  est  diem  Wodeni,  nunou- 
parunt.  Hie  hahuit  uxorem,  nomine  Fream,  cui  similiter  veteres 
sextam  feriam  consecrantes,  Freday,  id  est  diem  Frese,  appellarunt. 
Genuit  autem  Wodenus  ex  uxore  Frea  septem  filios  inclytos,  ex  quorum 
suocessione  septem  reges  traxerunt  originem,  qui  in  Britannia  potenter, 
expulsis  Britannis,  postea  regnaverunt.  Ex  filio  Wodeni  primogenito, 
nomine  Wecta,  reges  Cantuariorum ;  ex  seoundo,  Frehegeath,  reges 
Merciorum  ;  ex  tertio,  Baldao,  reges  Westsaxonum  ;  ex  quarto,  Bel- 


336  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  divinity  of  Woden  is  abundantly  clear :  he  is 
both  in  form  and  in  facb  identical  with  the  Norse 
Ojjinn  and  the  German  Wuotan,  the  supreme  god 
of  all  the  northern  races,  whose  divinity  none  will 
attempt  to  dispute  ^.  Nor  was  this  his  character 
unknown  to  our  early  chroniclers;  Malmesbury, 
speaking  of  Hengest  and  Hors,  says  :  "  They  were 
the  great-great-grandsons  of  that  most  ancient  Wo- 
den, from  whom  the  royal  families  of  almost  all 
the  barbarous  nations  derive  their  lineage ;  whom 
the  nations  of  the  Angles  madly  believing  to  be  a 
god,  have  consecrated  unto  him  the  fourth  day  of 
the  week,  and  the  sixth  unto  his  wife  Frea,  by  a 
sacrilege  which  lasts  even  unto  this  day  ^."  Mat- 
thew of  Westminster  ^  and  Geoffry  of  Monmouth  * 
repeat  this  with  characteristic  variations,  both  add- 
ing, apparently  in  the  words  of  Tacitus^,  "  Colimus 
maxime  Mercurium,  quern  Woden  lingua  nostra 
appellamus."  ^Sthelweard,  an  Anglosaxon  noble- 
man of  royal  blood,  and  thus  himself  a  descend- 
ant of  Woden,  had  previously  stated  the  same  thing 
after  the  fashion  of  his  own  age, — the  tenth  cen- 

dago,  reges  Northauhumbrorum,  sive  Berniciorum ;  ex  quinto,  Weg- 
dego,  reges  Deirorum ;  ex  sexto,  Kasero,  reges  Orientalium  Anglorum ; 
ex  septimo,  Saxnad,  reges  Orientalium  Saxonum  originem  habere  di- 
cuntur;  ootavus  vero,  id  est,  rex  Australium  Saxonum,  ex  eademgente, 
sed  non  ex  eadem  stirpe,  originem  sumpsit."    Flor.  Histor.  i.  346. 

'  It  is  a  peculiarity  of  the  Old-norse  to  omit  the  initial  W ;  thus 
ormr  for  wyrmr,  a  dragon  or  serpent :  ulfr,  for  wulfr,  a  wolf :  hence 
Obinu  is  literally  Woden.  The  identity  of  Wuotan  is  clearly  shown 
in  Grimm's  Deut.  Mythol.  p.  120,  seq. 

■'  WiU.  Malm.  De  Gest.  1  §  5. 

'  Mat.  Westm.  Flor.  Hist.  p.  82  (Ed.  1601). 

*  Galf.  Monum.  lib.  vi.  p.  43  (Ed.  1587). 

'  "  Deorum  maxime  Mercurium  colimt."    Germ.  ix. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.     WO'DEN.  337 

tury ;  he  says  o£  Hengest  and  Hors :  "  Hi  nepotes 
fuere  Uuoddan  regis  barbarorum,  quem  post,  in- 
fanda  dignitate,  ut  deum  honorantes,  sacrificium 
obtulerunt  pagani,  victoriae  causa  sive  virtutis^." 
Again,  he  says  :  "Wothen,  qui  et  rex  multarum  gen- 
tium, quem  pagani  nunc  ut  deum  colunt  aliqui." 
Thus,  according  to  him,  Woden  was  worshiped  as 
the  giver  of  victory,  and  as  the  god  of  warlike  va- 
lour. And  such  is  the  description  given  by  Adam 
of  Bremen  of  the  same  god,  at  Upsala  in  Sweden  : 
"  In  hoc  templo,  quod  totum  ex  auro  paratum  est, 
statuas  trium  deorum  veneratur  populus,  ita  ut 
potentissimus  eorum  Thor  in  medio  solum  habeat 
triclinium,  hinc  et  inde  locum  possident  Wodan 
et  Fricco.  Quorum  significationes  eiusmodi  sunt : 
Thor,  inquiunt,  praesidet  in  aere,  qui  tonitrus  et 
fulmina,  ventos  imbresque,  serena  et  fruges  gu- 
bernat.  Alter  Wodan,  id  est  Fortior,  bella  regit, 
hominumque  ministrat  virtutem  contra  inimicos. 
Tertius  est  Fricco,  pacem  voluptatemque  largiens 
mortalibus.  Cuius  etiam  simulachrum  fingunt  in- 
genti  Priapo.  Wodanem  vero  sculpunt  armatum, 
sicuti  nostri  Martem  sculpere  solent.  Thor  a,utem 
cum  sceptro  Jovem  exprimere  videtur."  The  Ex- 
eter book  names  Woden  in  a  similar  spirit : 

H^Snum  synne 
Woden  worMe  weohs, 
wuldor  alwealda 
rume  roderas^, 

that  is,  "  For  the  heathen  Woden  wrought  the  sin 

'  ^'Selw.  Ohron.  lib.  ii,  cap.  2.  ^  Cod.  Exon.  p.  341. 

VOL.  I.  Z 


338  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  idolatry,  but  the  glorious  almighty  God  the 
spacious  skies:"  and  an  early  missionary  is  de- 
scribed to  have  thus  taught  his  hearers :  "Woden 
vero  quem  principalem  deum  crediderunt  et  prae- 
cipuum  Angli,  de  quo  originem  duxerant,  cui  et 
quartam  feriam  consecraverant,  hominem  fuisse 
mortalem  asseruit,  et  regem  Saxonum,  a  quo  plures 
nationes  genus  duxerant.  Huius,  inquit,  corpore  in 
pulverem  resoluto,  anima  in  inferno  sepulta  aeter- 
num  sustinet  ignem^." 

To  Woden  was  dedicated  the  fourth  or  mid-day 
of  the  week,  and  it  still  retains  his  name:  this 
among  other  circumstances  tends  to  the  identifi- 
cation of  him  with  Mercurius^.  The  Old-norse 
Eunatale  ]jattr  which  introduces  0))inn  declaring 
himself  to  be  the  inventor  of  runes^,  is  confirmed 
by  the  assertion  in  the  dialogue  of  Salomon  and 
Saturn,  which  to  the  question  "  Who  invented  let- 
ters t. "  answers,  "  I  tell  thee,  Mercury  the  giant " — 
that  is,  "Woden  the  god:"  and  this  is  further  evi- 

1  Legend.  Nova,  fol.  210,  h. 

^  This  probably  -n'as  the  case  even  before  any  German  settlement  was 
made  in  Britain.  But  no  argument  can  be  raised  on  this  ground  against 
the  genuineness  of  the  Woden  worship  here ;  because,  if  the  continental 
Germans  worshiped  him,  they  probably  carried  his  rites  with  them  to 
England.  We  know  that  he  is  one  of  the  goda  named  in  the  cele- 
brated formulary  of  renunciation,  which  the  missionary  Christians  pre- 
pared for  the  use  of  the  Saxon  converts.  Why  the  interpretatio  Romana 
(Tac.  Germ.  xUii.)  fixed  upon  Woden  as  the  corresponding  god  to 
Mercury  we  do  not  clearly  see :  but  we  are  not  acquainted  with  the 
rites  and  legends  which  may  have  made  this  perfectly  clear  to  the 
Romans. 

^  Namek  upp  runar  :  Grimm  seems  to  have  some  doubt  of  the  ac- 
curacy of  this  translation.  Deut.  Myth.  p.  136  (edition  of  1844),  but  I 
think  unnecessarily.     At  all  events  the  invention  of  the  Hugrunar,  or 


CH.  XII.] 


HEATHENDOM.     WO'DBN. 


339 


dence  of  resemblance.  A  metrical  homily  in  vari- 
ous collections,  bearing  the  attractive  title  Befalsis 
diis,  supplies  us  with  further  proof  of  this  identi- 
fication, not  only  vv-ith  Woden,  but  vpith  the  Norse 
OJiinn :  it  says, 


Sum  man  was  gehaten 
Mercurius  on  life, 
se  was  swiSe  f^cenful 
and  swicol  on  dSednm, 
and  lufode  e^c  stala 
and  leasbrednysse  : 
tSone  maoodon  tSa  hsetSenan 
him  to  mieran  gode, 
and  88t  wega  gel^tum 
him  Idc  ofFrodon, 
and  to  heagum  beorgum 
him  brohton  onsEegdnysse. 
Da3s  god  wses  arwurSa 
betwux  eallum  h^Senum, 
and  he  is  Of  on  gehaten 
oSrum  naman  on  Denisc. 


A  man  there  was,  called 

Mercury  during  life, 

who  was  very  fraudulent 

and  deceitful  in  deeds, 

and  eke  loved  thefts 

and  deception : 

him  the  heathen  made 

a  powerful  god  for  themselves, 

and  by  the  road-sides 

made  him  offerings, 

and  upon  high  hOls 

brought  him  sacrifice. 

This  god  was  honourable 

among  aU  the  heathen, 

and  he  is  called  Odin 

by  another  name  in  Danish. 


Done  feorSan  dseg 
hi  sealdon  him  to  frofre 
Sam  foreseedan  Mercurie 
heora  m^ran  gode\ 


The  fourth  day 
they  gave  for  their  advantage 
to  the  aforesaid  Mercury 
their  great  god. 


Runes,  the  possession  of  which  makes  men  dear  to  their  companions, 
is  distinctly  attributed  to  him  in  the  Edda : 

J)8er  of  hugdi  Hroptr 

af  Jieim  legi 

er  lekijj  hafdi 

or  havfi  Heiddravpnis 

ok  or  horni  Hoddropnis.     (Brynh.-qu.  i.  13.) 
But  this  is  an  additional  point  of  approximation  to  the  deities  whom 
we  consider  identical  with  Hermes,  and  in  some  respects  with  Mercury, 
as  for  instance  Thoth. 

'  MS.  Cotton,  Julius  E.  vii.  237,  b.  etc.     See  the  author's  edition  of 
Salomon  and  Saturn,  p.  120,  seq. 

z2 


340  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Thus  we  have  Mercurius,  Woden  and  0))inn  suf- 
ficiently identified.  A  careful  investigation  of  the 
inner  spirit  of  Greek  mythology  has  led  some 
very  competent  judges  to  see  a  form  of  Hermes  in 
Odysseus.  This  view  derives  some  corroboration 
from  the  Teutonic  side  of  the  question,  and  the  re- 
lation in  which  Woden  stands  to  Mercurius.  Even 
Tacitus  had  learnt  that  Ulixes  had  visited  Germany, 
and  there  founded  a  town  which  he  called  Asci- 
burgium  ^ ;  and  without  insisting  on  the  probability 
that  Asciburgium  grew  out  of  a  German  Anseopurc 
or  a  Scandinavian  Asgard,  it  seems  not  unreason- 
able to  suppose  that  some  tales  of  Woden  had 
reached  the  ears  of  the  Eoman,  which  seemed  to 
him  to  resemble  the  history  of  Odysseus  and  his 
wanderings.  Such  a  tale  we  yet  possess  in  the  ad- 
ventures of  Thorkill  on  his  journey  to  Utgardaloki, 
narrated  by  Saxo  Grammaticus,  which  bears  a  re- 
markable likeness  to  some  parts  of  the  Odyssey  ^ ; 
and  when  we  consider  Saxo's  very  extraordinary 
mode  of  rationalizing  ancient  mythological  tradi- 
tions, we  shall  admit  at  least  the  probability  of  an 
earlier  version  of  the  tale  which  would  be  much 
more  consonant  with  the  suggestion  of  Tacitus, 
although  this  earlier  form   has  unfortunately  not 

'  ''  Ceterum  et  Ulixen  quidam  opinantur  longo  illo  et  fabuloso  errors 
in  hunc  Oceanum  delatura  adiisse  Germaniae  terras,  Ascibuigiumque, 
quod  in  ripa  Rheni  situm  hodieque  incolitur,  ah  illo  constitutum  nomi- 
natumque.  Aram  quinetiam  Ulixi  consecratam  adiecto  Laertae  patris 
nomine  eodem  loco  olim  repertam,  nionimentaque  et  tumulos  quosdanj 
Graecis  litteris  inscriptos  in  confinio  Germaniae  Rhaetiaeque  adhuc 
exstare.  Quae  neque  confirmare  argumentis,  neque  refellere  in  auimo 
st ;  ex  ingenio  suo  quisque  demat  vel  addat  fidem."  Germ.  iii. 
'  Saxo  Gram.  Hist.  Dan.  lib.  viii. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    WO'DEN.  341 

survived.  Woden  is,  like  Odysseus,  preeminently 
the  wanderer ;  he  is  Gangradr,  Gangleri,  the  rest- 
less, moving  deity.  Even  the  cloak,  hood  or  hat 
in  which  0>inn  is  always  clad  i  reminds  us  both  of 
the  petasus  of  Hermes  and  the  broad  hat  which 
Odysseus  generally  wears  on  ancient  gems  and 
pottery.  That  Woden  was  worshiped  cet  wega 
gelwtum,  and  that  he  was  the  peculiar  patron  of 
boundaries,  again  recalls  to  us  this  function  of 
Hermes,  and  the  "Epfiam.  When  we  hear  that  oflFer- 
ings  were  brought  to  him  upon  the  lofty  hills,  we 
are  reminded  that  there  was  an  aKpioc,  or  Mountain 
Hermes  too,  though  little  known ;  and  the  '^pfim 
irpofxayoQ,  perhaps  as  little  known  as  his  moun- 
tain brother,  answers  to  the  warlike,  victory-giving 
deity  of  our  forefathers  in  his  favourite  form. 

From  the  godlike  or  heroic  sons  of  Woden  de- 
scend all  the  races  qualified  to  reign,  and  some  of 
those  whose  names  are  found  in  the  Anglosaxon 
genealogies  may  be  easily  recognised  in  the  mytho- 
logical legends  of  the  continent.  In  some  one  or 
other  of  his  forms  he  is  the  eponymus  of  tribes  and 
races :  thus,  as  Geat  or  through  Geat,  he  was  the 
founder  of  the  Geatas ;  through  Gewis,  of  the  Ge- 
wissas ;  through  Scyld,  of  the  Scyldingas,  the  Norse 

Ojjinu  is  called  heklumaSi-j  the  man  with  the  cloak.  Forn.  Sbg. 
1.  325.  "  Kom  far  maSr  gamall,  miok  or^spakr,  einsyun  [OHun  was 
one-eyed  only]  ok  augdapr,  ok  haf^i  hatt  sidan."  Fomman.  Sog.  ii. 
138.  "Sa  hann  mann  mikiim  meS  sitSum  hetti.  . .  .ok  totti  koniingj 
gaman  set  rse'Sum  hans,  jiviat  hann  kunni  af  oUum  londum  ti'Sindi  at 
segja."  Fomman.  Sog.  v.  250.  He  is  called  SKhbttr  even  in  the  Edda. 
Through  this  cloak  or  Hackle,  Woden  hecomes  Hacleberend  or  Hackle 
berg,  who  rides  at  the  head  of  the  Wilde  Jagd  or  wild  hunt. 


342  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Skjoldungar;  through  Brand,  of  the  Brondingas; 
perhaps  through  Bsetwa,  of  the  Batavians  ^  It  seems 
indeed  not  wholly  improbable  that  every  name  in 
the  merely  mythical  portion  of  the  genealogies  re- 
presents some  particular  tribe,  under  the  distiactive 
appellation  of  its  tutelar  god  or  hero ;  and  that  we 
may  thus  be  led  in  some  degree  to  a  knowledge  of 
the  several  populations  which  coalesced  to  form  the 
various  kingdoms. 

Legends  describing  the  adventures  of  "Woden 
either  in  a  godlike  or  heroic  form  were  probably 
not  wanting  here,  or  in  Germany;  it  is  only  in 
Scandinavia  that  a  portion  of  these  have  been  pre- 
served, unless  the  tales  of  Geat  and  Sceaf,  to  be 
hereafter  noticed,  are  in  reality  to  be  referred  to 
him.  Equally  probable  is  it  that  he  had  in  this 
country  temples,  images  and  religious  rites,  traces 
of  which  we  find  upon  the  continent  ^ ;  and  that 


'  The  MS.  lists  read  Tsetwa,  but  as  the  alliteration  wHch  prevails  in 
those  pedigrees  fails  in  this  instance,  Grimm  threw  out  the  suggestion 
that  the  original  reading  was  Bsetwa.  Selden,  in  the  English  Janus, 
p.  9,  cites  Heuter  de  vet.  Belgio,  lib.  ii.  cap.  8,  for  Bato  (Bsetwa)  the 
eponymus  of  the  Batavians,  but  this  does  not  appear  to  rest  upon 
any  sound  authority.  On  the  subject  of  the  names  of  Woden,  and  the 
Anglosaxon  genealogies,  the  reader  may  consult  a  tract  of  the  author's, 
Die  Stammtafel  der  Westsachsen,  Munich  1836,  and  Beowulf,  vol.  ii., 
the  Postscript  to  the  Preface  :  together  with  a  review  of  the  first-named 
book  by  Jacob  Grimm,  in  the  Gottinger  Gel.  Anz.  for  1836. 

^  The  ancient  Germans  sacrificed  human  victims  to  him.  "  Deorum 
maxime  Mercurium  colunt,  cui  certis  diebus  humanis  quoque  hostiis 
litare  fas  habent."  Tac.  Germ,  xxxix.  "  Victores  diversam  aciem  Marti 
ac  Mercurio  sacravere,  quo  veto  equi,  viri,  cuncta  victa  occidioni  dan- 
tur."  Tac.  Annal.  xiii.  57.  King  Ane  or  Avn  the  old,  oiFered  up  in 
succession  nine  of  his  sons  to  Oj>inn,  to  increase  the  length  of  his  own 
life,  Yngling.  Sag.  cap.  xxix. ;  Geijer,  Gesch.  Schwed.  i.  416.  "Sunt 
etenim  inibi  vicinae  nationes  Suevorum ;  quo  cum  moraretur  et  inter 


OH.  XII.]  HEATHEN'DOM.     WO'DEN.  343 

trees,  animals  and  places  were  consecrated  to  him'. 
So  numerous  indeed  are  the  latter,  so  common  in 
every  part  of  England  are  names  of  places  com- 
pounded with  his  name,  that  we  must  admit  his 
worship  to  have  been  current  throughout  the  island : 
it  seems  impossible  to  doubt  that  in  every  quarter 
there  were  localities  (usually  rising  ground)  either 
dedicated  to  him,  or  supposed  to  be  under  his  espe- 
cial protection ;  and  thus  that  he  was  here,  as 
in  Germany,  the  supreme  god  whom  the  Saxons, 
Franks  and  Alamans  concurred  in  worshiping.  The 
following  names  of  places  may  all  be  unhesitatingly 
attributed  to  this  cause,  and  they  attest  the  gene- 
ral recognition  and  wide  dispersion  of  Woden's 
influence. 

WanhorougJi,  formerly  Wodnesheorh,  in  Surrey,  lat. 
51°  14'  N.,  long.  38'  W.,  placed  upon  the  water-shed 
which  throws  down  streams  to  north  and  south, 

liaHtatores  illiua  loci  progrederetur,  reperit  eos  sacriflcium  profanum 
litare  Telle,  vasque  magnum,  quod  vulgo  cupam  vocant,  quod  viginti 
et  sex  modios  amplius  minuave  capiebat,  cerevisia  plenum  in  medio  ha- 
bebant  positum.  Ad  quod  vir  dei  aocessit  et  soiscitatur,  quid  de  illo 
fieri  vellent  ?  Illi  aiunt :  deo  suo  Wodano,  quern  Mercurium  vocant  alii, 
se  Telle  litare.".  Ion.  Bobbiensis  Vita  Oolumbani.  Compare  also  what 
Saxo  Grammaticus  says  of  the  immense  tub  of  beer  whiob  Hunding 
prepared  to  celebrate  the  obsequies  of  Hadding.  Hist.  Dan.  p.  19.  On 
festal  occasions  it  was  usual  to  drink  to  the  health,  love  or  minne  of  the 
gods.  Obinn  Tfas  generally  thus  honoured :  the  custom  was  preserved 
among  Christians,  who  drank  minne  to  St.  John,  St.  Martin,  St.  Ger- 
trude and  other  saints.  Grimm,  Myth.  p.  53  sey. 

'  Wolves  and  raTens  appear  to  haTe  been  Otinn's  sacred  animals  : 
the  Saxon  legends  do  not  record  anything  on  this  subject ;  but  here 
and  there  we  do  hear  of  sacred  trees,  which  may  possibly  have  been 
dedicated  to  this  god :  thus  the  Wonao  (Cod.  Dipl.  No.  495),  the 
Wonstoc  (Ibid.  Nos.  287,  657),  "  ad  quendam  fraxinum  quem  imperiti 
sacrum  vocant."  Ibid.  No.  1052.  Respecting  the  sacred  character  of 
the  ash  see  Grimm,  Myth.  p.  617. 


344  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

and  running  from  east  to  west,  divides  the  county 
of  Surrey  into  two  nearly  equal  portions,  once  per- 
haps two  petty  kingdoms ;  the  range  of  hills  now 
called  the  Hog's-back.  It  is  a  little  to  the  north 
of  the  ridge,  nearly  on  the  summit ;  the  springs  of 
water  are  peculiarly  pure  and  never  freeze.  In  all 
probability  it  has  been  in  turn  a  sacred  site  for 
every  religion  that  has  been  received  in  Britain. 
Wanhorough,  formerly  Wodnesbeorh  in  Wiltshire, 
lat.  51°  33'  N.,  long.  1°  42'  W.,  about  3^  miles 
S.E.  of  Swindon,  placed  upon  the  watershed  which 
throws  down  the  Isis  to  the  north,  and  Kennet  to 
the  south.  Woodneshorough,  formerly  Wodnesbeorh, 
in  Kent,  lat.  51°  16'  N.,  long.  1°  29'  E.,  throwing 
down  various  small  streams  to  north  and  south, 
into  the  Stour  and  the  sea.  Wonston  (probably  Wod- 
nesstdn)  in  Hampshire,  lat.  51°  10'  N.,  long.  1°  20' 
W.,  from  which  small  streams  descend  to  north  and 
south,  into  the  Test  and  Itchen.  Wamhrook  (pro- 
bably Wddneshroc)  in  Dorsetshire.  Wampool  (pro- 
bably Wodnespol)  in  Cumberland.  Wansford  (pro- 
bably Wodnesford)  in  Northamptonshire.  Wansford 
in  the  East  Riding  of  Yorkshire.  Wanstead  (pro- 
bably Wodnesstede)  an  old  Roman  station  in  Essex. 
Wanstrow,  formerly  Wodnestreow,  in  Somerset. 
Wanhorough  or  Warnborough,  formerly  Wodnesbeorh, 
two  parishes  in  Hampshire.  Wembury,  formerly 
Wodnesbeorh,  in  Devonshire.  Wonersh  (probably 
TFodnesersc),  a  parish  at  the  foot  of  the  Hog's-back, 
a  few  miles  from  Wanhorough.  Wansdike,  formerly 
Wodnesdic,  an  ancient  dike  or  fortification,  per- 
haps the  boundary  between  different  kingdoms :  it 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    WO'DEN.  345 

extended  in  a  direction  from  east  to  west  through 
more  than  one  of  our  southern  counties.  Its  re- 
mains are  visible  three  or  four  miles  W.S.W.  of 
Malmesbury  in  Wiltshire,  and  it  crosses  the  northern 
part  of  Somerset  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Bath 
to  Portshead  on  the  Bristol  Channel,  where  it  ends 
in  lat.  51°  29'  N.,  long.  2°  47'  W. 

In  addition  to  these  references,  which  might  be 
made  far  more  numerous,  if  necessary,  we  have 
many  instances  in  the  boundaries  of  charters,  of 
trees,  stones  and  posts  set  up  in  Woden's  name, 
and  apparently  with  the  view  of  giving  a  religious 
sanction  to  the  divisions  of  land.  In  this,  as  in 
other  respects,  we  find  a  resemblance  to  Hermes. 
It  is  also  to  be  borne  in  mind  that  many  hills  or 
other  natural  objects  may  in  fact  have  been  dedi- 
cated to  this  god,  though  bearing  more  general 
names,  as  O'sbeorh,  Godeshyl  and  so  forth. 

One  of  the  names  of  Odin  in  the  Old-norse  my- 
thology is  Osk,  which  by  an  etymological  law  is 
equivalent  to  the  German  Wunsch,  the  Anglosaxon 
Wise,  and  the  English  Wish.  Grimm  has  shown 
in  the  most  convincing  manner  that  Wunsch  may 
be  considered  as  a  name  of  Wuotan  in  Germany  ^ ; 
and  it  is  probable  that  Wusc  or  Wise  may  have  had 
a  similar  power  here.  Among  the  names  in  the 
mythical  genealogies  we  find  Wuscfrea,  the  lord  of 
the  wish,  and  I  am  even  inclined  to  the  belief  that 
.Oisc,  equivalent  to  E'sk,  the  founder  of  the  Kentish 
line  of  kings,  may  be  a  Jutish  name  of  Woden 
in  this  form, — esc,  or  in  an  earlier  form  oski,  i.  e. 

'   Deut.  Myth.  p.  126  seq. 


346 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book.  i. 


Wunsch,  Wysc^.  In  Devonshire  to  this  day  all 
magical  or  supernatural  dealings  go  under  the  com- 
mon name  of  Wishtness :  can  this  have  any  refer- 
ence to  Woden's  name  Wysc]  So  again  a  bad  or 
unfortunate  day  is  a  wisht  day :  perhaps  a  diaboli- 
cal, heathen,  accursed  day.  There  are  several  places 
which  appear  to  be  compounded  w^ith  this  name ; 
among  them :  Wishanger  ( Wischangra  or  Woden's 
meadow),  one,  about  four  miles  S.W.  of  Wanbo- 
rough  in  Surrey,  and  another  near  Gloucester  ; 
Wisley  ( Wiscledh)  also  in  Surrey  ;  Wishorough  (pro- 
bably Wischeorh)  in  Sussex;  Wishford  (probably 
Wiscford)  in  Wiltshire. 

2.  pUNOE,  in  Old-norse  pORE,  in  Old-german 
DONAR. — The  recognition  of  Dunor  in  England 
was  probably  not  very  general  at  first :  the  settle- 
ment of  Danes  and  Norwegians  in  the  ninth  and 
following  centuries  may  have  extended  it  in  the 
northern  districts.  But  though  his  name  is  not 
found  in  the  genealogies  of  the  kings,  there  was 
an  antecedent  probability  that  some  traces  of  his 
worship  would  be  found  among  the  Saxons.  Thunar 
is  one  of  the  gods  whom  the  Saxons  of  the  con- 
tinent were  called  upon  to  renounce,  and  a  total 
abnegation  of  his  authority  was  not  to  be  looked 
for  even  among  a  race  who  considered  Woden  as 
the  supreme  god.  That  the  fifth  day  of  the  week 
was  called  by  his  name  is  well  known :  Thursday 

^  Oisc  in  tlie  form  in  wliicli  the  earliest  authorities  give  this  name, 
^sc  is  certainly  later,  and  may  have  been  adopted  only  when  the  ori- 
ginal meaning  of  Oisc  had  become  forgotten. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    DUNOR.  347 

is  Dunres  dseg,  dies  Jovis;  and  he  is  the  proper 
representative  of  Jupiter,  inasmuch  as  he  must  be 
considered  in  the  light  of-  the  thundering  god,  an 
elemental  deity,  powerful  over  the  storms,  as  well 
as  the  fertilizing  rains  ^.  His  peculiar  weapon,  the 
mace  or  hammer,  seems  to  denote  the  violent, 
crushing  thunderbolt,  and  the  Norse  myth  repre- 
sents it  as  continually  used  against  the  giants  or 
elemental  gods  of  the  primal  world.  In  a  compo- 
sition whose  antiquity  it  is  impossible  to  ascer- 
tain, we  may  still  discover  an  allusion  to  this 
point :  in  the  Christian  Eagna  Ravk,  or  Twilight  of 
the  Qods,  it  was  believed  that  a  personal  conflict 
would  take  place  between  the  divinity  and  a  devil, 
the  emissary  and  child  of  Satan :  in  the  course  of 
this  conflict,  it  is  said  :  "se  Dunor  hit  jjyrsce^  mid 
^£ere  fyrenan  sexe,"  the  thunder  will  thresh  it  with 
the  fiery  axe  ^ ;  and  I  am  inclined  to  see  a  similar 
allusion  in  the  Exeter  Book,  where  the  lightning 
is  called  rynegiestes  wcepn,  the  weapon  of  Avkv 
Dorr,  the  car-home  god.  Thunder^. 

The  names  of  places  which  retain  a  record  of 
Dunor  are  not  very  numerous,  but  some  are  found  : 
among  them  Thundersfield,  Dunresfeld,  in  Surrey^; 
Thimdersley,  Dunresleah,  in  Essex,  near  Saffron 
Walden ;  Thundersley,  Dunresleah,  also  in  Essex, 
near  Kaylegh,  and  others  in  Hampshire^.     Near 

^  See  the  quotation  from  Adam  of  Bremen,  p.  837. 
"  Salomon  and  Saturn,  pp.  148,  177. 
=  Cod.  Exon.  p.  386. 1.  8. 
*  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  270,  314,  363,  413. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  450,  781,  784,  1022, 1038.  Some  of  these  are  not 
in  Essex,  but  Hampshire. 


348  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Wanborough  in  Surrey  is  Thursley,  which  may  have 
been  a  Dunresleah  also :  it  is  unlikely  that  it  was 
ever  Doresleah,  from  Dorr  (the  Norse  form  of  Du- 
nor),  but  it  might  have  been  Dyrsleah,  the  meadow 
of  the  giant  or  monster.  Very  near  Thursley  is  a 
hill  called  Thunder  hill,  probably  Dunres  hyl.  A  si- 
milar uncertainty  hangs  over  Thurleigh  in  Bedford- 
shire, Thurlow  in  Essex,  Thurshy  in  Cumberland, 
Thursjield  in  StaflPordshire,  and  Thursford  in  Nor- 
folk i.  The  name  of  Dunor  was,  to  the  best  of  my 
knowledge,  never  borne  by  any  man  among  the 
Anglosaxons,  which  is  in  some  degree  an  evidence 
of  its  high  divinity.  The  only  apparent  exception 
to  this  assertion  is  found  in  an  early  tale  which 
bears  throughout  such  strong  marks  of  a  mythical 
character  as  to  render  it  probable  that  some  legend 
of  Dunor  was  current  in  England  ;  especially  as  its 
locality  is  among  the  Jutish  inhabitants  of  Kent. 
According  to  this  account,  Ecgbert  the  son  of  Eor- 
cenberht,  the  fourth  Christian  king  of  Kent,  had 
excluded  his  cousins  from  the  throne,  and  fearing 
their  popularity  determined  on  removing  them  by 
violence.  The  thane  Thuner  divined  and  executed 
the  intentions  of  his  master.  Under  the  king's  own 
throne  were  the  bodies  concealed  ;  but  a  light  from 
heaven  which  played  about  the  spot  revealed  the 
crime  :  the  king  paid  to  their  sister  the  wergyld  of 


'  The  analogy  of  Thursday,  which  was  unquestionably  Thundersday, 
must  be  allowed  its  weight  in  considering  these  local  names.  Even 
Dyrs  itself,  at  one  period  of  Anglosaxon  development,  might  represent 
Dunor,  and  the  resemblance  of  names  thus  lead  to  a  little  straining  of 
the  true  one. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.     DUNOR.  349 

the  slain  princes :  a  hind,  let  loose,  defined  the  boun- 
daries of  the  grant  which  was  to  make  compensation 
for  the  murder :  forty-eight  hides  of  land  thus  be- 
came the  property  of  Domneva,  and  the  repentant 
king  erected  upon  them  a  monastery.  The  assassin 
Thuner,  however,  added  to  his  guilt  the  still  higher 
atrocity  of  sneering  at  the  king's  repentance  and  its 
fruits :  the  earth  suddenly  opened  beneath  his  feet 
and  swallowed  him ;  while  the  church  placed  the 
names  of  his  victims,  ^"Selred  and  ^ESelberht,  on 
the  list  of  its  martyrs.  Any  comment  upon  this,  as 
a  historical  transaction,  would  be  perfectly  super- 
fluous, but  it  may  possibly  contain  some  allusion  of 
a  mythological  nature ;  for  it  seems  that  the  very 
fact  of  Dunor's  not  being  a  god  generally  worshiped 
in  England,  would  render  him  likely  to  form  the 
foundation  of  heroic  stories.  I  will  not  absolutely 
say  that  the  dragon-slaughter  of  Beowulf  is  a  di- 
rect reference  to  the  myth  of  Dunor,  though  this 
is  possible.  Another  hero  of  Anglosaxon  tradition 
bears  the  name  of  the  "Wandering  Wolf ;"  he  slew 
five-and-twenty  dragons  at  daybreak,  "  on  dseg- 
reed ; "  and  fell  dead  from  their  poison,  as  Thorr  does 
after  slaying  Midgard's  orm,  and  Beowulf  after  his 
victory  over  the  firedrake.  The  wolf  however  is  a 
sacred  beast  of  Woden,  and  these  names  of  Wan- 
dering wolf,  Mearcwulf,  etc.  may  have  some  refer- 
ence to  him,  especially  as  we  learn  from  Grimm 
that  in  some  parts  of  Denmark  the  wild  huntsman, 
who  is  unquestionably  Woden,  bears  the  name  of 
the  flying  Marcolf  i.     The  heathen  character  of  the 

1  Deut.  Myth.  p.  530  (ed.  1835). 


350  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

whole  relation  is  proved  by  the  fact  of  the  "  famous 
sailor  on  the  sea,"  the  "wandering  wolf"  being 
represented  as  the  friend  of  Nebrond,  probably 
Nimrod^. 

One  of  the  names  by  which  Dunor  is  known  in 
Germany  is  Hamar^,  which  was  perhaps  originally 
derived  from  his  weapon.  This  has  become  almost 
synonymous  with  devil.  Perhaps  the  same  allusion 
lurks  in  one  or  two  names  of  places  in  England : 
in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  Thursley  in 
Surrey,  and  at  a  short  distance  from  Thunderhill, 
are  some  ponds  known  by  the  name  of  the  Hammer- 
ponds.  It  is  remarkable  that  within  two  or  three 
miles  of  Thursley  and  the  Hammer-ponds,  three 
singular  natural  mounds  which  form  most  conspi- 
cuous objects  upon  a  very  wild  and  desert  heath, 
should  bear  the  name  of  the  Devil's  Jumps,  while 
at  a  short  distance  a  deep  valley  is  known  by  that 
of  the  Devil's  Punchbowl,  probably  at  some  early 
period,  the  Devil's  Cup,  Dunres-cup  or  the  Hamar- 
cup.  The  word  Hamarden  occurs  in  the  bounda- 
ries of  charters^ ;  and  other  places  recall  the  same 
name :  thus  Hameringham  in  Lincoln,  Eamerton  in 
Huntingdon,  Homerton  in  Middlesex  (hardly  Ham- 
mersmith in  Middlesex),  Hamerton  Green  in  York- 
shire, Hamerton  Kirk  in  Yorkshire,  Hammerwick  in 
Staffordshire. 

3.  TIW,  the   Old-norse  TYE,  and  Old-german 
ZIU. — The  third  day  of  the  week  bears  among  us 

1  Sal.  Sat.  p.  156.  "  Deut.  Mvth.  p.  166. 

^  Cod.  Dipl.  Nos.  999,  1039,  1189. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    TIW.  851 

the  name  of  the  god  Tiw,  the  Old-norse  Tyr.  In 
like  manner  we  find  him  also  giving  his  name  to 
places.  In  the  neighbourhood  so  often  referred  to 
in  this  chapter,  and  which  seems  to  have  been  a 
very  pantheon  of  paganism^,  not  far  from  Thursley 
or  from  Wanborough,  we  find  Tewesley,  which  I 
have  no  scruple  to  pronounce  the  ancient  Tiwes- 
leah.  Tisleah  ^  seems  to  denote  the  same  name,  and 
it  is  probable  that  even  a  race  acknowledged  this 
god  as  its  founder, — the  Tiwingas,  who  gave  their 
name  to  Tewing  in  Herts.  Tiwes  mere^  seems  to 
be  the  mere  or  lake  of  Tiw,  and  in  another  charter 
we  have  also  Tedwes  J>orn*,  which  goes  far  towards 
substantiating  the  German  form  Ziu. 

The  Anglosaxon  glossaries  are  perfectly  accurate 
when  they  give  the  rendering  Mars  for  Tiw^,  and 
Tiwesdeeg  is  rightly  dies  Martis.  It  cannot  be 
doubted  that  our  forefathers  worshiped  this  god, 
as  a  supreme  giver  of  victory,  and  especially  a  god 
of  battle,  in  some  parts  of  Scandinavia  and  Ger- 
many ;  whether  or  not  in  England  appears  doubtful. 
In  the  mythology  of  the  North  he  is  the  bravest  of 
the  gods,  the  one  who  did  not  scruple  to  place  his 

'  In  a  circuit  of  a  few  mUes  (taken  from  Elstead  -witli  a  radius  per- 
haps of  not  more  than  four)  we  have  Wanborough,  Polstead,  Thursley, 
the  Hammer-ponds,  Waverley,  Tewesley,  ThunderhiU,  Dragonhill, 
Wonersh,  the  Devil's  Jumps,  the  Devil's  Punchbowl,  Wishanger,  Esh- 
ing,  Loseley  (Loces  leah  ?),  Godalming  (Godhelmingham),  and — as  I 
believe,  in  close  connexion  with  these — GyldhUl,  Guildford,  Guilddown, 
Erensham  (Eremesham),  Tilford,  Tilhill,  Markwick,  Ash,  and  Unstead. 

'  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  739.  ^  Ibid.  No.  262.  <>  Ibid.  No.  174. 

'  Mone's  Epinal  Glosses  gives  Tiig,  Mars,  No.  620,  and  Lye  does 
the  same  without  a  reference,  but  no  doubt  from  some  MS.  glossary. 
The  form  is  in  the  same  relation  to  Tiw  as  Higan  to  Hiwan,  or  gesegen 
{visus)  to  gesewen ;  but  the  long  vowel  is  assiu'ed  by  the  double  i. 


352  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

hand  in  the  mouth  of  the  wolf  Fenris,  when  he  de- 
manded a  pledge  that  the  gods  would  unbind  the 
chain  they  had  forged  for  him,  and  on  their  breach 
of  faith  Tyr  paid  the  penalty  i.  The  Eoman  his- 
torian tells  of  the  Hevmunduri  having  vowed  to 
sacrifice  the  beaten  Catti  to  Mercury  and  Mars,  by 
which  vow  the  whole  of  the  horses  and  men  be- 
longing to  the  defeated  force  were  devoted  to 
slaughter.  Jornandes  says  of  the  Goths,  "  Martem 
semper  asperrima  placavere  cultura  ;  nam  victimae 
ejus  mortes  fuere  captorum,  opinantes  bellorum 
praesulem  aptius  humani  sanguinis  eflfusione  pla- 
catum^."  Procopius  tells  the  same  tale  of  his  Qov 
Mrai,  that  is  the  Scandinavians :  twm  Se  lepe'^v  acplai 

TO  KaWiarov  avOfiWTTOQ  esTiv,  ovtrep  av  oopia^torov  ttoi- 
riaaivro  irpwrov'  tovtov  yap  t(j)  '  Ajoet  dvovaiv,  eiret  Oeov 

aiiTov  vo/niZovai  fieyiiJTov  elvai^.  The  Norse  traditions, 
although  they  acknowledge  OJiinn  as  the  giver  of 
victory,  are  still  very  explicit  as  to  Tyr :  he  is  par- 
ticularly Wigagu'S,  deus  praeliorum,  and  an  especial 
granter  of  success  in  battle,  "  rae'Sr  mioc  sigri  i 
orostom^."  Perhaps  the  Tencteri  may  be  added  to 
the  number  of  those  who  paid  an  especial  honour 
to  Tyr  (in  German  Ziu),  since  Tacitus  makes  them 
say,  "  communibus  deis  et  praecipuo  deorum  Marti 
grates  agimus^,"  where  it  is  not  at  all  necessary  to 
suppose  Woden  is  meant ;  and  Grimm  has  good  rea- 

'  Hence  in  Norse  lie  is  called  the  one-handed  god,  as  Obinn  is  the 
one-eyed.  The  Teutonic  gods,  unlike  the  Indian,  have  not  a  super- 
fluity, but  on  the  contrary  sometimes  a  lack,  of  limbs.  It  is  otherwise 
with  their  horses,  etc. 

^  Hist.  Goth.  cap.  v.  '  ggy^  Qo^h.  ii.  15. 

*  Grimm,  D.  Myth.  p.  179.  »  Hist.  iv.  64. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    TI'R.  353 

son  to  number  the  Suevi  among  the  worshipers  of 
Ziui. 

The  Anglosaxon  runic  alphabet,  which  in  several 
letters  recalls  the  names  or  attributes  of  the  an- 
cient gods,  uses  Tir  for  T :  the  German  runes  want- 
ing a  Z=T,  apply  Ziu :  there  is  however  another 
rune,  similar  in  shape  to  the  runic  T,  but  having 
the  power  of  EA ;  this  bears  the  name  of  Ear,  but 
sometimes  also  in  MSS.  that  of  Tir :  there  are  ety- 
mological grounds  on  which  the  word  Tir,  gloria, 
must  be  connected  with  Tiw,  and  we  are  hence  led 
to  the  supposition  that  Ear  may  have  been  another 
name  for  that  god.  This  gains  a  great  importance 
when  we  bear  in  mind  that  in  some  parts  of  south 
Germany,  the  third  day  of  the  week  is  called,  not 
Zistag,  but  Ertag,  Eritag,  Erichtag,  for  which  we 
should  indeed  have  expected  Erestag :  and  when 
we  find  in  Saxon  Westphalia  an  undeniably  hea- 
then spot  called  Eresburg,  Mons  Martis,  now  Mers- 
berg,  i.  e.  Eresberg,  the  hill  of  Er,  Ziu  or  Mars. 

Now  the  Anglosaxon  poem  on  the  runic  charac- 
ters has  something  to  tell  us  of  Ear.    It  says  of  him. 

Ear  biS  egle 
eorla  gehwylcum, 
Sonne  faestlice 
flsesc  onginneS 
hra  oolian, 
hrusan  ceosan 
blac  to  gebeddan. 
Blteda  gedreosaS, 
wynna  gewitaS, 
wera  geswioaS '. 

'  Deut.  Myth.  pp.  180,181. 

'  On  the  Eunes  of  the  Anglosaxons,  by  J.  M.  Kemble.     Archaeo- 
logia,  vol.  xxviii. 

VOL.  I.  2  A 


364  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

that  is,  "  Ear  is  a  terror  to  every  man,  when  fast 
the  flesh,  the  corpse  beginneth  to  become  cold  and 
pale  to  seek  the  earth  for  a  consort.  Joy  faileth, 
pleasure  departeth,  engagements  cease."  It  is  clear 
that  Ear,  spica,  arista,  will  not  explain  this,  and  we 
may  believe  that  our  forefathers  contemplated  the 
personal  intervention  of  some  deity  whose  contact 
was  death.  This  may  have  been  Tiw  or  Ear,  espe- 
cially in  the  battle-field,  and  here  he  would  be  equi- 
valent to  the  "Apric  jSjooToXoiyoc  fiiaKpovoc  of  Homer. 
More  than  this  we  shall  hardly  succeed  in 
rescuing :  but  there  yet  remains  a  name  to  consider, 
which  may  possibly  have  tended  to  banish  the  more 
heathen  one  of  Tiw.  Among  all  the  expressions 
which  the  Anglosaxons  used  to  denote  a  violent 
death,  none  is  more  frequent  than  wig  fornam,  or 
wig  gesceod,  in  which  there  is  an  obvious  person- 
ality, Wig  (War)  ravished  away  the  doomed :  here 
no  doubt  war  was  represented  as  personally  inter- 
vening, and  slaying,  as  in  other  similar  cases  we 
find  the  feminines  Hild,  Gu^,  which  are  of  the  same 
import,  and  the  masculines  Swylt,  Dea^,  mors.  The 
abstract  sense  which  also  lay  in  the  word  wig,  and 
enabled  it  to  be  used  without  offence  to  Christian 
ears,  may  have  been  a  reason  for  its  general  adop- 
tion in  cases  where  at  an  earlier  period  Tiw  would 
have  been  preferred.  Old  glossaries  give  us  the 
rendering  Wig  Mars,  and  Hild,  Bellona :  it  is  there- 
fore not  at  all  improbable  that  these  words  were 
purposely  selected  to  express  what  otherwise  must 
have  been  referred  to  a  god  of  perilous  influence : 
Wig  was  a  more  general,  and  therefore  less  dan- 
gerous name  than  Tiw,  to  recal  to  the  memory  of  a 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    WI'G.  855 

people  prone  to  apostasy.  That  the  latter  survived 
in  the  name  of  a  weekday  serves  only  to  show  that  it 
was  too  deeply  grounded  to  be  got  rid  of;  perhaps  its 
very  familiarity  in  that  particular  relation  rendered 
it  safe  to  retain  the  name  of  any  deity,  as  was  done 
by  five  out  of  the  seven  days.  But  Christianity 
was  tolerant  of  heathen  names  in  other  than  hea- 
then functions,  and  in  the  genealogy  of  the  kings 
of  Wessex,  Wig  is  the  father  of  Gewis,  the  epony- 
mus  of  the  race.  I  have  already  expressed  my  be- 
lief that  this  name  represented  either  Woden  or 
Tiw,  and  think  it  very  likely  that  it  was  the  latter, 
inasmuch  as  the  paganism  of  the  Gewissas  seems  to 
have  been  remarkable,  beyond  that  of  other  Anglo- 
saxon  tribes  :  "  Sed  Britanniam  perveniens,  ac  pri- 
mum  Gewissorum  gentem  ingrediens,  cum  omnes 
ibidem  paganissimos  inveniret,"  etc.^  "  Intrante 
autem  episcopo  in  portum  occidentalium  Saxonum, 
gentem  qui  antiquitus  Gewisse  vocabantur,  cum 
omnes  ibidem  paganissimos  inveniret,"  etc.^  The 
events  described  are  of  the  year  634.  We  find  that 
Tiw  enters  into  the  composition  of  the  names  of  a 
few  plants^ ;  on  the  other  hand  it  is  never  found  in 
the  composition  of  proper  names,  any  more  than 
Tir ;  although  now  Tirberht  or  Tirwulf  would  seem 
quite  as  legitimate  compounds  as  Eadberht,  Sige- 
berht,  Eadwulf,  Sigewulf 

FREA',  in  Old-norse  FREYR,  in   Old-german 
FEO. — The  god  whom  the  Norse  mythology  cele- 

'  Beda,  Hist.  Ecc.  iii.  7.       ^  Johann.  Tynem.  Legend.  Nova,  fol.  38. 
'  Thus  Old-norse  Tysfiola,  Tyrhjalm,  TysvKr. 

2  a2 


333  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

brates  under  the  name  of  Freyer  must  have  borne 
among  us  the  name  of  Frea.  It  is  probable  that  he 
enjoyed  a  more  extensive  vporship  in  all  parts  of 
Europe  than  we  can  positively  demonstrate.  At 
present  we  are  only  enabled  to  assert  that  the  prin- 
cipal seat  of  his  worship  was  at  Upsala  among  the 
Swedes.  In  general  there  is  not  much  trace  in  the 
North  of  phallic  gods ;  but  an  exception  must  be 
made  at  once  in  the  case  of  Freyr.  One  of  the 
most  beautiful  poems  of  the  Edda  ^  tells  how  Freyr 
languished  for  desire  of  the  beautiful  Gerdr ;  it  was 
for  her  love  that  he  lost  the  sword,  the  absence  of 
which  brings  destruction  upon  him  in  the  twilight 
of  the  Gods.  The  strongest  evidence  of  his  pecu- 
liar character  is  found  in  the  passage  already  cited 
from  Adam  of  Bremen  2,  and  what  he  says  of  the 
shape  under  which  Frea  was  represented  at  Upsala : 
"  Tertius  est  Fricco,  pacem,  voluptatemque  largiens 
mortalibus ;  cujus  etiam  simulachrum  fingunt  in- 
genti  Priapo."  The  fertilizing  rains,  the  life-bring- 
ing sunshine,  the  blessings  of  fruitfulness  and  peace 
were  the  peculiar  gifts  of  Freyr  ^ ;  and  from  Adam 
of  Bremen  again  we  learn  that  he  was  the  god  of 
marriage  :  "  Si  nuptiae  celebrandae  sunt,  sacrificia 
oflferunt  Fricconi."  In  his  car  he  travelled  through 
the  land,  accompanied   by  a  choir  of  young  and 


'  For  Skirnis.  The  legend  of  Geat  and  Mas^liild  however  must  have 
been  of  this  character :  and  thus  Woden  may  have  been  in  some  sort  a 
phallic  Hermes. 

"  M.  Adami  Bremensis  lib.  de  situ  Daniae.  Ed.  1629,  p.  23.  Ihre, 
in  his  Gloss.  Sueogoth.  mentions  forms  dug  up  in  the  North  which 
clearly  prove  the  prevalence  of  phallic  rites. 

'  See  Grimm,  Mytholr  p.  193  seq. 


CH.xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    FEEA'.  357 

blooming  priestesses^,  and  wherever  he  came  plenty 
and  peace  abounded.  The  beast  sacred  to  Freyr 
was  the  boar,  and  it  is  not  improbable  that  various 
customs  and  superstitions  connected  with  this  ani- 
mal may  have  had  originally  to  do  with  his  wor- 
ship. It  is  not  going  too  far  to  assert  that  the 
boar's  head  which  yet  forms  the  ornament  of  our 
festive  tables,  especially  at  Christmas,  may  have 
been  inherited  from  heathen  days,  and  that  the 
vows  made  upon  it,  in  the  middle  ages,  may  have 
had  their  sanction  in  ancient  paganism.  But  it  is 
as  an  amulet  that  we  most  frequently  meet  with  the 
boar  in  Anglosaxon.  Tacitus  says  of  the  iEstyi, 
that,  in  imitation  of  the  Suevish  custom,  "  Matrem 
deum  venerantur ;  insigne  superstitionis,  formas 
aprorum  gestant.  Id  pro  armis  omniumque  tutela ; 
securum  deae  cultorem  etiam  inter  hostes  prae- 
stat^."  The  relation  between  Frea  and  the  Mater 
deorum  is  a  near  one.  Now  the  Anglosaxon  poems 
consider  a  boar's  form  or  figure  so  essential  a  por- 
tion of  the  helmet,  that  they  use  the  word  eofor, 
aper,  for  that  part  of  the  armour : 

het  8d  inberan  he  commanded  them  to  bring  in 

eofor  heafordsegn,  the  boar  (i.  e.  helmet)  the  ornament 

of  the  head, 
heaSostedpne  helm.  the  helmet  lofty  in  battle'. 

And  still  more  closely,  with  reference  to  the  virtues 
of  this  sign : 

eoforlic  scionon  the  forms  of  boars  they  seemed 

ofer  hleor  beran  above  their  cheeks  to  bear 

'  Fornman.  Sog.  ii.  73  seq. 

'  Germ.  xlv.  '  Beow.  1.  4299  seq. 


358  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

gekroden  golde,  adorned  with  gold, 

fah  and  ffrheard  various  and  hardened  in  the  fire 

ferhwearde  heold.  it  held  the  guard  of  life  ^ 

And  again : 

ac  se  hwita  helm  but  the  white  helmet 

hafelan  werede,  guarded  the  head, 


since  geweortSad,  adorned  with  treasure, 

hefongen  freawrasnum,  set  about  with  lordly  signs, 

swa  bine  fyrndagum  as  it  in  days  of  yore 

worhte  wsepna  smiS,  the  armourer  made, 

wundrum  teode,  wondrously  produced, 

besette  swinlicum,  set  it  about  with  shapes  of  boars, 

Sset  hine  syt5San  no  that  afterwards  neither 

brond  ne  beadomecas  brand  nor  warknife 

bftan  ne  meahton.  might  penetrate  it^. 

Grimm  citing  this  passage  goes  so  far  as  even  to 
render  "frea  wrasnum"  by  FrotJionis  sigm's,  and  thus 
connects  it  at  once  with  Frea^ ;  and  we  may  admit 
at  all  events  the  great  plausibility  of  the  sugges- 
tion. But  though  distinct  proof  of  Frea's  worship 
in  England  cannot  be  supplied  during  the  Saxon 
period,  we  have  very  clear  evidence  of  its  still  sub- 
sisting in  the  thirteenth  century.  The  following 
extraordinary  story  is  found  in  the  Chronicle  of 
Lanercost^  an.  1268.  "Pro  fidei  divinae  integri- 
tate  servanda  recolat  lector  quod,  cum  hoc  anno 
in  Laodonia  pestis  grassaretur  in  pecudes.armenti, 
quam  vocant  usitate  Lungessouth,  quidam  bestiales, 

'  Bedw.  1.  604  seq. 

^  Ibid.  1.  2895.  ^  Mythol.  p.  195. 

*  Edited  in  1839  by  the  Rev.  J.  Stevenson  for  the  members  of  the 
Bannatyne  and  Maitland  Clubs. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.     FREA'.  359 

habitu  claustrales  non  animo,  docebant  idiotas  pa- 
triae ignem  confrictione  de  lignis  educere  et  simu- 
lachrum  Priapi  statuere,  et  per  haec  bestiis  suc- 
currere.  Quod  cum  unus  laicus  Cisterciencis  apud 
Fentone  fecisset  ante  atrium,  aulae,  ac  intinctis 
testiculis  canis  in  aquam  benedictam  super  ani- 
malia  sparsisset,  ac  pro  invento  facinore  idola- 
triae  dominus  villae  a  quodam  fideli  argueretur, 
ille  pro  sua  innocentia  obtendebat,  quod  ipso  ne- 
sciente  et  absente  fuerant  haec  omnia  perpetrata, 
et  adiecit,  et  cum  ad  usque  hunc  mensem  Junium 
aliorum  animalia  languerent  et  deficerent,  mea 
semper  sana  erant,  nunc  vero  quotidie  mihi  mori- 
untur  duo  vel  tria,  ita  quod  agricultui  pauca  super- 
sunt." 

Fourteen  years  later  a  similar  fact  is  stated  to 
have  occurred  in  a  neighbouring  district,  at  Inver- 
keithing,  in  the  present  county  of  Fife. 

"  Insuper  hoc  tempore  apud  Inverchethin,  in 
hebdomada  paschae  [_Mar.  29 — Ap.  5],  sacerdos 
parochialis,  nomine  Johannes,  Priapi  prophana  pa- 
rans,  congregatis  ex  villa  puellulis,  cogebat  eas, 
choreis  factis,  Libero  patri  circuire  ;  ut  ille  feminas 
in  exercitu  habuit,  sic  iste,  procacitatis  causa,  mem- 
bra humana  virtuti  seminariae  servientia  super  as- 
serem  artificiata  ante  talem  choream  praeferebat, 
et  ipse  tripudians  cum  cantantibus  motu  mimico 
omnes  inspectantes  £t  verbo  impudico  ad  luxuriam 
incitabat.  Hi,  qui  honesto  matrimonio  honorem 
deferebant,  tam  insolente  officio,  licet  reverentur 
personam,  scandalizabant  propter  gradus  eminen- 
tiam.     Si  quis  ei  seorsum  ex  amore  correptionis 


360  THE  SAXOXS  Es  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

sermonen  inferret,  fiebat  deterior,  et  conviciis  eos 
impetebat." 

It  appears  that  this  priest  retained  his  benefice 
until  his  death,  which  happened  in  a  brawl  about 
a  year  later  than  the  events  described  above  ;  and 
it  is  very  remarkable  that  the  scandal  seems  to 
have  been  less  at  the  rites  themselves  than  at  their 
being  administered  by  a  person  of  so  high  a  cleri- 
cal dignity.  Grimm  had  identified  Freyr  or  Frowo 
with  Liber :  it  will  be  observed  that  his  train  of 
reasoning  is  confirmed  by  the  name  Liber  Pater, 
given  in  the  chronicler's  recital.  The  union  of  the 
Needfire  with  these  Priapic  rites  renders  it  proper  to 
devote  a  few  words  to  this  particular  superstition. 

The  needfire,  nydffr,  jSTew-german  nothfeuer,  was 
called  from  the  mode  of  its  production,  confrictimie 
de  lignis,  and  though  probably  common  to  the  Kelts^ 
as  well  as  Teutons,  was  long  and  well  known  to  all 
the  Germanic  races  at  a  certain  period.  All  the 
fires  in  the  village  were  to  be  relighted  from  the 
virgin  flame  produced  by  the  rubbing  together  of 
wood,  and  in  the  highlands  of  Scotland  and  Ireland 
it  was  usual  to  drive  the  cattle  through  it,  by  way 
of  lustration,  and  as  a  preservative  against  disease  2. 

^  See  Jamieson's  Scottish  Dictionary,  voc.  Beltane,  and  Boucher's 
Glossary  by  Stevenson. 

^  In  the  Mirror  of  June  Mth,  1826,  there  is  the  account  of  this  ha- 
ving been  done  in  Perthshire,  on  occasion  of  a  cattle  epidemic.  "  A 
wealthy  old  farmer,  having  lost  several  of  his  cattle  by  some  disease 
very  prevalent  at  present,  and  being  able  to  account  for  it  in  no  way 
so  rationally  as  by  witchcraft,  had  recourse  to  the  following  remedy, 
recommended  to  him  by  a  weird  sister  in  his  neighbourhood,  as  an 
effectual  protection  from  the  attacks  of  the  foul  fiend.  A  few  stones 
were  piled  together  in  the  barnyard,  and  woodcoals  having  been  laid 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    NEEDFIRE.  361 

But  there  was  another  curious  ceremony  connected 
with  the  lighting  of  fires  on  St.  John's  eve, — pro- 
bably from  the  context,  on  the  23rd  of  June.  A 
general  reference  for  this  may  be  made  to  Grimm's 
Mythologie,  pp.  570-592,  under  the  general  heads 
of  Nothfeuer,  Bealtine  and  Johannisfeuer  ;  but  the 
following  passage,  which  I  have  not  seen  cited  be- 
fore, throws  light  on  Grimm's  examples,  and  adds 
some  peculiarities  of  explanation.  It  is  found  in  an 
ancient  MS.  written  in  England  and  now  in  the 
Harleian  collection,  No.  2345,  fol.  50. 

"  Eius  venerandam  nativitatem  cum  gaudio  cele- 
brabitis ;  dico  eius  nativitatem  cum  gaudio ;  non 
illo  cum  gaudio,  quo  stulti,  vani  et  prophani,  ama- 
tores  mundi  huius,  accensis  ignibus,  per  plateas, 
turpibus  et  illicitis  ludibus,  commessationibus,  et 
ebrictatibus,  cubilibus   et  impudicitiis  intendentes 

illam  celebrare  solent Dicamus  de  tripudiis 

quae  in  vigilia  sancti  Johannis  fieri  solent,  quorum 
tria  genera.  In  vigilia  enim  beati  Johannis  coUi- 
gunt  pueri  in  quibusdam  regionibus  ossa,  et  quae- 
dam  alia  immunda,  et  insimul  cremant,  et  exinde 
producitur  fumus  in  aere.  Faciunt  etiam  brandas 
et  circuunt  arva  cum  brandis.     Tercium  de  rota 

thereon,  tlie  fuel  was  ignited  by  will-fire,  tliat  is  fire  obtained  by  fric- 
tion; the  neighbours  having  been  called  in  to  witness  the  solemnity, 
the  cattle  were  made  to  pass  through  the  flames,  in  the  order  of  their 
dignity  and  age,  commencing  with  the  horses  and  ending  with  the 
swine.  The  ceremony  having  been  duly  and  decorously  gone  through, 
a  neighbouring  farmer  observed  to  the  enlightened  owner  of  the  herd, 
that  he,  along  with  his  family,  ought  to  have  followed  the  example  of 
the  cattle,  and  the  sacrifice  to  Baal  would  have  been  complete."  The 
will-fire  has  been  used  in  Devonshire  for  the  same  purpose,  within  the 
memory  of  man. 


362  THE  SAXONS  ESf  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

quam  faciunt  vohi :  quod,  cum  immunda  cremant, 
hoc  habent  ex  gentilibus.  Antiquitus  enim  dra- 
cones  in  hoc  tempore  excitabantur  ad  libidinem 
propter  calorem,  et  volando  per  aera  frequenter 
spermatizabantur  aquae,  et  tunc  erat  letalis,  quia 
quicumque  inde  bibebant,  aut  moriebantur,  aut 
grave  morbum  paciebantur.  Quod  attendentes  phi- 
losophi,  iusserunt  ignem  fieri  frequenter  et  spar- 
sim  circa  puteos  et  fontes,  et  immundum  ibi  cre- 
mari,  et  quaecumque  immundum  reddiderunt  fu- 
mum,  nam  per  talem  fumum  sciebant  fugari  dra- 
cones  ....  Rota  involvitur  ad  significandum  quod 
sol  tunc  ascendit  ad  alciora  sui  circuli  et  statim 
regreditur,  inde  venit  quod  volvitur  rota." 

An  ancient  marginal  note  has  ionfires,  intending 
to  explain  that  word  by  the  bones  burnt  on  such 
occasions.  Grimm  seems  to  refer  this  to  the  cult 
of  Baldr  or  Beeldeeg,  with  which  he  connects  the 
name  Beltane;  but  taking  all  the  circumstances 
into  consideration,  I  am  inclined  to  attribute  it 
rather  to  Frea,  if  not  even  to  a  female  form  of  the 
same  godhead,  Fricge,  the  Aphrodite  of  the  North. 
Frea  seems  to  have  been  a  god  of  boundaries ;  pro- 
bably as  the  giver  of  fertility  and  increase,  he  gra- 
dually became  looked  upon  as  a  patron  of  the  fields. 
On  two  occasions  his  name  occurs  in  such  bounda- 
ries, and  once  in  a  manner  which  proves  some  tree 
to  have  been  dedicated  to  him.  In  a  charter  of  the 
year  959  we  find  these  words :  "  ^onne  andlang 
herpa^es  on  Frigedseges  treow," — thence  along  the 
road  to  Friday's  (that  is  Frea's)  tree^;  and  in  a 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1221. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.     B^LD^G.  863 

similar  document  of  the  same  century  we  have  a 
boundary  running  "o^  'Sone  Frigedseg."  There  is 
a  place  yet  called  Fridaythorpe,  in  Yorkshire.  Here 
Frigedseg  appears  to  be  a  formation  precisely  similar 
to  Bseldseg,  Swsefdaeg,  and  Wsegdseg,  and  to  mean 
only  Frea  himself. 

BALD^G,  in  Old-norse  BALDR,  in  Old-ger- 
man  PALTAC. — The  appearance  of  Bseldseg  among 
Woden's  sons  in  the  Anglosaxon  genealogies,  would 
naturally  lead  us  to  the  belief  that  our  forefathers 
worshiped  that  god  whom  the  Edda  and  other  le- 
gends of  the  North  term  Baldr,  the  father  of  Brand, 
and  the  Phoebus  Apollo  of  Scandinavia.  Yet  be- 
yond these  genealogies  we  have  very  little  evidence 
of  his  existence.  It  is  true  that  the  word  bealdor 
very  frequently  occurs  in  Anglosaxon  poetry  as  a 
peculiar  appellative  of  kings, — nay  even  as  a  name 
of  God  himself, — and  that  it  is,  as  far  as  we  know, 
indeclinable,  a  sign  of  its  high  antiquity.  This 
word  may  then  probably  have  obtained  a  general 
signification  which  at  first  did  not  belong  to  it, 
and  been  retained  to  represent  a  king,  when  it  had 
ceased  to  represent  a  god.  There  are  a  few  places 
in  which  the  name  of  Balder  can  yet  be  traced  : 
thus  Baldersby  in  Yorkshire,  Balderston  in  Lanca- 
shire, Bealderesleah  and  Baldheresbeorh  in  Wilt- 
shire ^ :  of  these  the  two  first  may  very  likely  have 
arisen  from  Danish  or  Norwegian  influence,  while 
the  last  is  altogether  uncertain.  Save  in  the  gene- 
alogies the  name  Bseldseg  does  not  occur  at  all. 

1  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  1059,  92. 


364  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

But  there  is  another  name  under  which  the  Anglo- 
saxons  may  possibly  have  known  this  god,  and  that 
is  Pol  or  Pal. 

In  the  year  1842  a  very  extraordinary  and  very 
interesting  discovery  was  made  at  Merseberg :  upon 
the  spare  leaf  of  a  MS.  there  were  found  two  me- 
trical spells  in  the  Old-german  language :  these 
upon  examination  were  at  once  recognized  not  only 
to  be  heathen  in  their  character,  but  even  to  con- 
tain the  names  of  heathen  gods,  perfectly  free  from 
the  ordinary  process  of  Christianization.  The  one 
with  which  we  are  at  present  concerned  is  in  the 
following  words : 

Phol  endi  Wodan  Phol  and  Wodan 

vuonin  zi  holza,  went  to  the  ■wood, 

da  wart  demo  Balderea  volon  then  of  Balder's  colt 

sin  vuoz  birenkit ;  the  foot  was  wrenched ; 

thu  biguolen  Sinthgunt,  then  Sinthgunt  charmed  him, 

Sunna  era  suister,  and  her  sister  Sunna, 

thu  biguolen  Frhi,  then  Frua  charmed  him, 

Volla  era  suister,  and  her  sister  Folia, 

thu  biguolen  Wodan,  then  Woden  charmed  him, 

so  he  wola  conda  :  as  he  well  could  do  : 

sose  benrenki,  sose  bluotrenki,  both    wrench    of   bone,    and 

wrench  of  blood, 

sose  lidirenki ;  and  wrench  of  limb  ; 

ben  zi  bena,  bone  to  bone, 

bluot  zi  bluoda,  and  blood  to  blood, 

lid  zi  geliden,  Umb  to  limb, 

sose  gelimida  sin.  as  if  thej-  were  glued  together. 

The  general  character  of  this  poem  is  one  well 
known  to  us :  there  are  many  Anglosaxon  spells  of 
the  same  description.  What  makes  this  valuable 
beyond  all  that  have  ever  been  discovered,  is  the 


CH.  xu.]  HEATHENDOM.    POL.  365 

number  of  genuine  heathen  names  that  survive  in 
it,  which  in  others  of  the  same  kind  have  been  re- 
placed by  other  sanctions ;  and  which  teach  us  the 
true  meaning  of  those  which  have  survived  in  the 
altered  form.  In  a  paper  read  before  the  E.oyal 
Academy  of  Sciences  in  Berlin,  Grimm  identified 
Phol  with  Baldr^,  and  this  view  he  has  further  de- 
veloped in  the  new  edition  of  his  Mythology  2.  It 
is  confirmatory  of  this  view  that  we  possess  the 
same  spell  in  England,  without  the  heathendom, 
and  where  the  place  of  the  god  Baldr  is  occupied 
by  that  of  our  Lord  himself.  The  English  version 
of  the  spell  runs  thus  : 

The  lord  rade, 
and  the  foal  slade ; 
He  lighted 
and  he  righted ; 
set  joint  to  joint 
and  hone  to  hone, 
sinew  to  sinew. 
Heal,  in  the  Holy  Ghost's  name' ! 

It  will  be  admitted  that  this  is  something  more 
than  a  merely  curious  coincidence,  and  that  it  leads 
to  an  induction  of  no  little  value.  Now  it  appears 
to  me  that  we  have  reasonable  ground  to  believe 
our  version  quite  as  ancient  and  quite  as  heathen 
as  the  German  one  which  still  retains  the  hea- 
then names,  and  that  we  have  good  right  to  sup- 
pose that  it  once  referred  to  the  same  god.     How 

'  "  Ueher  zwei  entdeckte  Gedichte  aus  der  Zeit  des  deutschen  Hei- 
denthiuns.  Von  Jacob  Grimm."  Vorgelesen  in  der  Kbnigl.  Akademie 
der  Wissenschaften,  am  3  Febr.  1842,  pp.  10, 11. 

^  Deut.  Mythol,  p.  205.  '  Chalmers's  Nursery  Tales. 


366  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

then  was  this  god  named  in  England  1  Undoubt- 
edly Pol  or  PaP.  Of  such  a  god  we  have  some 
obscure  traces  in  England.  We  may  pass  over 
the  Appolyn  and  Apollo,  whom  many  of  our  early 
romancers  number  among  the  Saxon  gods,  al- 
though the  confused  remembrance  of  an  ancient 
and  genuine  divinity  may  have  lurked  under  this 
foreign  garb,  and  confine  ourselves  to  the  names  of 
places  bearing  signs  of  Pol  or  Pal.  Grimm  has 
shown  that  the  dikes  called  Phalgraben  in  Germany 
are  much  more  likely  to  have  been  originally  Pfol- 

'  Though  little  fond  of  modem  Anglosaxon  Terses,  of  modern  Latin 
hexameters  or  modern  Greek  iambics,  I  shall  give  a  translation  of  these 
two  spells,  for  the  purpose  of  comparison : 

Pol  and  Woden 

to  wuda  fdron 

Bealdres  folan  wear's 

fot  bewrenced ; 

■Sa  bine  Sa%u^  begol, 

Sunne  hire  sweoster, 

^a  hine  Frye  begol, 

Folle  hire  sweoster, 

■Sa  hine  Woden  begol 

Bwa  he  wel  cii'Se  : 

swa  sy  bauwrence,  swa  sy  blodwrence^ 

swa  sy  li'Swrence ; 

ban  to  bane, 

bldd  to  bldde, 

li«  to  ]i«e, 

swa  swa  gelimede  syn. 

And  thus  the  English  one : 

Dryhten  rad, 
fola  slad ; 
se  lihtode 
and  rihtode ; 
sette  li«  to  li«e 
eac  swa  ban  to  bane, 
sinewe  to  sinewe. 
Hal  wes  tSu,  on  fea  Halgan  Gastes  naman  ! 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    POL.  367 

graben,  and  his  conclusion  applies  equally  to  Pal- 
grave,  two  parishes  in  Norfolk  and  Suffolk: — so 
Wodnes  Die,  and  the  Devil's  Dike  between  Cam- 
bridge and  Newmarket.  Polebrooke  in  North- 
amptonshire, Polesworth  in  Warwickshire,  Pol- 
hampton  in  Hants  ^,  Polstead  in  Suffolk,  Polstead 
close  under  Wanborough  (Wodnesbeorh)  in  Surrey, 
— which  is  remarkable  for  the  exquisite  beauty  of 
its  springs  of  water, — Polsden  in  Hants,  Polsdon 
in  Surrey,  seem  all  of  the  same  class.  To  these 
we  must  add  Polsley  and  Polthorn,  which  last 
name  would  seem  to  connect  the  god  with  that  par- 
ticular tree :  last,  but  not  least,  we  have  in  Poling, 
in  Sussex,  the  record  of  a  race  of  Polingas,  who 
may  possibly  have  carried  up  their  genealogy  to 
Bseldseg  in  this  form. 

The  myth  of  Baldr  in  the  North  is  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  and  striking  in  the  whole  compass 
of  their  mythology :  it  is  to  be  lamented  that  no 
trace  of  it  remains  in  our  own  poems.  Still  Baldr's 
lay  may  not  have  been  entirely  without  influence 
upon  the  progress  of  Christianity  among  the  Saxons, 
if,  as  is  probable,  it  resembled  in  its  main  features 
the  legend  of  the  Scandinavians.  For  them  he  was 
the  god  of  light  and  grace,  of  splendour,  manly  ex- 
cellence and  manly  beauty.  A  prophecy  that  Baldr 
would  perish  afflicted  the  gods ;  Frigga  took  an 
oath  from  all  created  nature  that  no  individual 
thing  would  harm  the  pride  of  the  ^sir,  the  dar- 

1  PoliMmatiin.  Cod.  Dipl.  Noa.  642,  752, 1136, 1187.  Polesleah  in 
Wilts.  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  641.  Polstede  in  Suffolk.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  685. 
PolJ>orn  in  Worcester.    Ood.  Dipl.  No.  61.    Polleham,  No.  907. 


368 


THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 


ling  of  the  Asyniar.  A  sprig  of  mistletoe,  at  that 
time  too  young  to  enter  into  so  solemn  an  obliga- 
tion, was  alone,  and  fatally,  excepted.  The  invul- 
nerability of  the  god  induced  him  to  offer  himself 
as  a  mark  for  the  practice  of  his  relatives  and 
friends.  Maces,  axes  and  spears  fell  innocuous 
from  his  sacred  frame ;  but  Loki  placed  a  sprig  of 
mistletoe  in  the  hand  of  the  blind  Haudr^,  and 
with  this,  the  sole  thing  that  could  not  be  forsworn, 
he  slew  his  brother.  An  effort  still  remained  to  be 
made.  0}iinn  himself  descended  to  the  abode  of 
Hel,  in  hopes  of  persuading  the  goddess  of  the  dead 
to  relinquish  her  prey.  He  was  successful,  and  re- 
turned with  the  joyful  intelligence  that  Baldr  would 
be  restored  to  the  gods,  if  all  created  nature  would 
weep  for  him.  All  nature  did  weep  for  the  loss  of 
the  god  of  beauty,  save  one  old  crone.  When  called 
upon  to  do  her  part  in  his  restoration  she  answered, 
"  What  have  the  gods  done  for  me,  that  I  should  weep 
for  Baldr  ^  Let  Hel  keep  her  dead !  "  It  is  thought 
that  it  was  Loki  who  had  assumed  the  old  woman's 
form.  Thus  Baldr's  fate  was  sealed.  The  faithful 
Nanna^  would  not  survive  her  beautiful  lord,  and 
the  gods  and  goddesses  attended  round  the  pile 
on  which  their  two  cherished  companions  were  re- 

-  In  Anglosaxon,  Hea^o,  wliich  however  lias  almost  always  the  abs- 
tract sense  of  war. 

'  In  Anglosaxon,  Nd^ :  tMs  occurs  rarely  save  in  composition,  where 
it  seems  to  denote  hrayery  or  courage.  But  it  is  to  be  observed  that 
nd^  is  the  name  of  a  ship  or  large  boat ;  and  it  is  worth  inquiry  whe- 
ther the  Teutonic  goddess  Ziza,  probably  in  Anglosaxon  Tate,  may  not 
have  been  identical  with  this  Nanua,  instead  of  Frouwa.  The  dragging 
about  a  boat  or -ship  was  peculiar  to  Ziza's  worship.  Deut.  Myth. 
p.  237,  seq. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    POL.  869 

duced  to  dust  together.  But  the  slain  god  could 
hope  for  no  resurrection  :  his  throne  was  placed 
in  the  shadowy  realm  of  Hel,  and  weeping  virgins 
spread  the  eternal  pall  that  was  to  give  dreary 
honour  to  the  god  of  light  in  the  cold  kingdom  of 
darkness  and  the  invisible.  The  posthumous  son, 
or  more  likelyre-birth,  of  the  god,  avenged  his  father 
upon  the  wretched  instrument  of  Loki's  wiles.  Yet 
those  who  had  fathomed  the  deeper  mysteries  of  the 
creed  knew  well  enough  that  Baldr  was  to  rise  again 
in  triumph  :  after  the  twilight  of  the  gods  and  the 
destruction  of  the  ancient  world,  he  was  to  return 
in  glory  and  joy,  and  reign  in  a  world  where  there 
should  be  neither  sin  nor  sorrow,  nor  destruction. 

Of  these  details,  the  Anglosaxon  mythology 
knows  nothing,  in  the  forms  which  have  survived : 
and  perhaps  in  this  peculiar  myth  we  may  recog- 
nize something  of  an  astronomical  character,  which 
can  certainly  not  be  attributed  to  other  Northern 
legends.  However  this  may  be,  we  must  content 
ourselves  with  the  traces  here  given  of  Pol,  as  one 
form  of  Baldr,  and  with  the  genealogical  relation 
which  has  been  noticed.  Meagre  as  these  facts 
undoubtedly  are,  they  are  amply  sufficient  to  prove 
that  the  most  beloved  of  the  Northern  gods  was 
not  altogether  a  stranger  to  their  children  in  this 
island.  Perhaps  the  adoption  of  another  creed 
led  to  the  absorption  of  this  divinity  into  a  person 
of  far  higher  and  other  dignity,  which,  while  it 
smoothed  the  way  for  the  reception  of  Christianity, 
put  an  end  for  ever  to  even  the  record  of  his  suf- 
ferings. 

VOL.  I.  2  b 


370  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

GEA'T,  in  Old-norse  GAUTR,  in  Old-German 
KO'Z. — A  cursory  allusion  has  already  been  made 
to  Geat,  probably  only  another  form  of  Woden, 
since  in  the  mythology  of  the  North,  0|7inn  is 
Gautr,  but  certainly  the  eponymus  of  the  Geatas, 
that  tribe  of  whom  Beowulf  was  the  champion  and 
afterwards  the  king.  Geat  appears  in  the  AVest- 
saxon  genealogy  as  a  progenitor  of  Woden,  but  this 
collocation  is  unimportant  in  mythological  inqui- 
ries. It  is  probable  that  Gapt,  whom  Jornandes 
places  at  the  head  of  the  Gothic  genealogy,  is  only 
a  misreading  of  Gavt,  which  is  the  equivalent 
Gothic  form  of  Geat,  and  that  Sigegeat,  Angelgeat, 
WaSelgeat,  which  occur  in  other  Anglosaxon  ge- 
nealogies, are  identical  with  him  ^.  His  love  for 
Ma'Shild,  a  legend  unknown  to  all  the  nations  of 
the  North,  save  our  own  forefathers,  is  noticed  in 
the  Exeter  Book  :  it  is  there  said, 

We  «8et  MseShUde  To  M^tShild,  we 

monge  gefmnon  the  tale  have  heard, 

wurdon  grundlease  that  endless  was 

Geates  frige  the  love  of  Geat, 

^aet  him  seo  sorglufu  so  that  the  paiu  of  love 

sleep  ealle  binom.  took  all  sleep  from  him^. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  this  is  all  we  learn 
on  this  subject,  which  becomes  very  interesting  when 

'  And  see  Geijer,  Gesch.  Schwed.  i.  30.     Gaut,  Gautrek,  Algaut, 
Gauthilld.     Yngl.  Sag.  cap.  38. 

Cod.  Exon.  p.  378.  If  Geat  really  he  Woden,  this  is  another  ap- 
proximation to  Hermes  in  his  phallic  character.  Altogether  the  myth 
of  the  icpos  yaixos,  so  constant  in  Greek  mythology,  is  scarcely  trace- 
able in  the  North.  The  Woden  worship,  at  least,  may  have  had  some- 
thing more  of  the  character  of  the  Apollo  worship  among  the  Dorians. 


cH.xii.]  HEATHENDOM.    GEAT.  371 

we  remember  how  little  trace  there  is  of  phallic 
gods  in  the  Northern  mythology.  But  that  Gedt 
was  a  god,  and  not  merely  a  hero,  is  not  left 
entirely  to  inference  :  it  is  distinctly  asserted  by 
various  and  competent  authorities :  Nennius  has 
declared  him  to  have  been  films  dei,  not  indeed 
the  God  of  Hosts,  and  God  of  Gods,  but  of  some 
idol'^.  But  Asser,  who  was  no  doubt  well  acquainted 
with  the  traditions  of  iElfred's  family,  says  2,  "  Quem 
Getam  dudum  pagani  pro  deo  venerabantur," 
which  is  repeated  in  the  same  words  by  Elorence  of 
Worcester^  and  Simeon  of  Durham^,  and  is  con- 
tained in  a  Saxon  genealogy  preserved  in  the  Tex- 
tus  Koffensis,  "  Geata,  'Sene  ^a  hseSenan  wurSedon 
for  God."  We  can  therefore  have  no  scruple  about 
admitting  his  divinity ;  and  a  comparison  of  the 
Gothic  and  Scandinavian  traditions  proves  the  be- 
lief in  it  to  have  been  widely  held.  The.name,  which 
is  derived  from  geotan,  to  pour,  most  probably  de- 
notes only  the  special  form  in  which  Woden  was 
worshipped  by  some  particular  tribes  or  families  ; 
and  the  occurrence  of  it  in  the  genealogies,  only 
the  fact  that  such  tribes  or  families  formed  part  of 
the  national  aggregates,  to  whose  royal  line  it  be- 
longs. But  nevertheless  we  must  admit  the  per- 
sonality attributed  to  him  by  those  tribes,  and  the 
probability  of  his  having  been',  at  least  for  them, 
the   national   divinity.       The  circumstance    of  his 

'  Nennius,  §  31.     Huntingdon  follows  Nennius,  Hist.  Angl.  bk.  ii. 
"  De  Reb.  Gest.  ^Ifredi,  an.  849. 
°  Flor.  Wig.  Ohron.  an.  849. 
*  De  Reb.  Gest.  Regum,  an.  849. 

2b2 


372  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [booki, 

name  having  left  such  deep  traces  as  we  perceive 
in  the  quotations  given  above,  proves  not  only  the 
especial  divinity  of  the  person,  but  perhaps  also  the 
political  power  and  importance  of  the  worshippers  i. 

S^TEB/E. — Among  the  Gods  invariably  men- 
tioned as  having  been  worshipped  by  our  forefathers 
is  one  who  answered  to  the  Latin  Saturnus,  at  least 
in  name.  From  the  seventh  week-day  we  may  in- 
fer that  his  Anglosaxon  name  was  Ssetere,  perhaps 
the  Placer  or  Disposer'^;  for  Sseteresdseg  seems" a 
more  accurate  form  than  Sseternesdseg  which  we 
sometimes  find.  There  are  both  names  of  places 
and  of  plants  formed  upon  the  name  of  this  god: 
as  Satterthwaite  in  Lancashire,  Satterleigh  in  De- 
vonshire and  Sseteresbyrig  ^  in  the  same  county,  of 
which  there  appears  to  be  no  modern  represeuta 
tive ;  while  among  plants  the  Gallicrus,  or  common 
crowfoot,  is  called  in  Anglosaxon  Satorla^e.  The 
appearance  of  Saturnus  as  an  interlocutor  in  such 
a  dialogue  as  the  Salomon  and  Saturn*  is  a  further 
evidence  of  divinity ;  so  that,  taking  all  circum- 
stances into  account,  it  is  probable  that  when  Gre- 
gory of  Tours,  Geoffry  of  Monmouth  and  others, 
number  him  among  the  Teutonic  gods,  they  are 
not  entirely  mistaken.     Now  there  has  been  a  tra- 

'  See  the  author's  edition  of  Beowulf,  vol.  ii.  Postscript  to  the  Pre- 
face. Leo's  Beowulf,  etc. ;  and  EttmuUer's  Beowulf,  etc.,  with  the  last 
of  whom,  upon  the  maturest  consideration,  I  find  it  impossihle  to  agree. 

'  Grimm  seems  rather  to  imagine  insidiator.     Myth.  p.  226. 

5  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  81.S. 

*  An  edition  of  the  Anglosaxon  dialogues  on  this  suhject  has  heen 
put  forth  by  the  author  for  the  JKMvic  Society.  To  this  reference  may 
be  made  for  full  details  respecting  Saturnus. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    S^TEBE,  373 

dition,  in  Germany  at  least,  of  a  god  Chrodo,  or 
Hruodo,  whose  Latin  name  was  Saturn,  and  whose 
figure  is  said  to  have  been  that  of  an  old  man 
standing  upon  a  fish,  and  holding  in  one  hand  a 
bundle  of  flowers,  while  the  other  grasps  a  wheel. 
Grimm  imagines  herein  some  Avorking  of  Slavonic 
traditions  1,  and  following  the  Slavonic  interpreters 
connects  this  Chrodo  with  Kirt  or  Sitivrat,  and 
again  with  some  Sanskrit  legend  of  a  Satjavrata^. 
But  the  reasoning  seems  inconclusive,  and  hardly 
sufficient  to  justify  even  the  very  cautions  mode  in 
which  Grimm  expresses  himself  about  this  Slavo- 
Germanic  godhead^.  More  than  this  we  cannot  say 
of  the  Anglosaxon  Ssetere,  whose  name  does  not 
appear  in  the  royal  genealogies ;  nevertheless  we 
cannot  doubt  the  existence  of  some  deity  whom  our 
forefathers  recognized  under  that  name. 

'  It  is  with  no  disrespect  to  tlie  unrivalled  powers  of  Scott  that  I 
enter  my  protest  here  against  the  false  costutne  of  Ivanhoe  ;  a  far  more 
serious  objection  no  doubt  is  the  way  in  which  his  brilliant  contrast, 
necessary  to  the  success  of  a  romance,  has  misled  the  historian.  Had 
Ivanhoe  not  appeared,  we  should  not  have  had  the  many  errors  which 
disfigure  Thierry's  Conquete  de  I'Angleterre  par  les  Normands.  But 
when  Scott  makes  Ulrica  (Ulrica  a  Saxon  female  name !)  calling  upon 
Zerneboek,  as  a  god  of  her  forefathers,  he  makes  her  talk  absolute  non- 
sense. Some  Mecklenburg  or  Pomeranian  Saxons,  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood  of  Slavonic  populations,  or  mingled  with  them,  may 
possibly  have  heard  of  their  god  Czerny  Bog,  (the  black  gnd)  contrasted 
with  Bjala  Bog,  (the  white  god),  but  assuredly  no  Anglosaxon  ever 
heard  the  name  of  any  such  deity  ;  nor  does  the  chaunt  of  the  vindictive 
lady  bear  one  single  trace  of  Saxon  character.  In  every  matter  of 
detail,  the  romance  is  only  calculated  to  mislead  ;  and  this  is  to  be  re- 
gretted, inasmuch  as  the  beauty  of  the  whole  work  renders  it  a  certain 
vehicle  of  error; — has  rendered  it  already  a  snare  to  one  estimable  au- 
thor. M.  Thierry  has  related  the  effect  produced  upon  his  mind  hy 
Ivanhoe.     See  his  Dix  Ans  d'Etudes  Historiques :  Preface. 

^  Deut.  Myth.  p.  227.  ^  See  Salomon  and  Saturn,  p.  129, 


374  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

From  the  Gods  we  pass  to  the  Goddesses :  of  these 
we  have  indeed  but  scanty  record  in  England.  Of 
the  great  and  venerable  goddess  Fricge,  Woden's 
wife,  we  are  only  told  that  she  gave  her  name  to 
the  sixth  day  of  the  week ;  and  we  must  admit  that 
this  is  all  we  know  of  her,  unless  she  be  implied 
under  some  other  name,  which  is  possible. 

Beda  in  acquainting  us  with  the  ancient  names 
of  the  Anglosaxon  months  tells  us  of  four  which 
were  called  from  their  especial  reference  to  the 
gods :  these  are  Solmona^  or  February ;  Hre'Smo- 
naS,  March ;  Eostermona'S,  April ;  and  Blotmona^, 
November.  Solmona^  he  says  received  its  name 
from  the  cakes  which  were  offered  to  the  gods  at 
that  time^;  Blotmona'S  from  the  victims  (cattle)  that 
were  vowed  for  sacrifice;  of  the  others  he  says^, 
"  HreSmona^  is  called  from  a  goddess  of  theirs, 
— Eheda,  to  whom  they  sacrificed  in  that  month. 
Eostermona'S,  which  is  now  interpreted  by  the 
'Paschal  month,'  had  its  name  of  old  from  a  god- 
dess of  theirs  named  Eostre,  to  whom  in  this  month 
they  offered  celebrations." 

The  Scandinavian  and  German  mythology  are 
alike  destitute  of  these  names ;  although  among 
the  many  goddesses  they  recognize  some  two  may 
perhaps  be  identical  with  ours.  The  name  Hre^e 
may  possibly  mean  severe,  fierce,  and  denote  a  war- 
like goddess ;  but  still  I  am  more  inclined  to  con- 
nect it  with  the  adjective  Hro'S,  glorious,  famous, 

^  Can  this  word  sol  (perhaps  s6V)  be  a  contracted  form  of  mfi  f    K 
not,  I  cannot  offer  an  explanation  of  it. 
^  De  Natura  Eerum,  cap.  xv. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    GODDESSES.  875 

and  to  see  in  it  the  meaning  of  the  great  or  glori- 
ous goddess,  that  is,  in  some  form  or  other,  Fricge, 
Woden's  wife :   it  is  however  not  to  be  forgotten 
that  the  German  Chrodo,  in  Anglpsaxon  Hro'S  or 
even  HreSe,  is  now  admitted,  and   that  this  god 
was  in  fact  Saturn.     It  is  true  that  we  have  more 
than  one  fragmentary  legend  in  which  the  name  of 
Saturn  survives,  but  in  a  heroic  rather  than  a  god- 
like form,  and  this  may  have  been  the  cause  of  its 
preservation :  the  Church  found  Saturn  useful,  and 
kept  him ;  nor  is  it  at  all  surprising  that  a  change 
of  sex  should  have  taken  place :    the  same   thing 
happened  with  the  German  goddess  Nerthus,  who 
reappears  in  the  Norse  god  Niordr,  and  the  classical 
scholar  will  at  once  remember  the  god  Lunus,  as 
well  as  the  goddess  Luna^.     Whatever  explanation 
we  may  attempt  to  give  of  Hre'Se,  it  is  clear  that 
she  was  a  Saxon  goddess  to  whom  at  stated  periods 
sacrifice  was  offered.     The  same  thing  may  be  said 
of  Eostre  or  Eastre,  whose  name  must  be  etymolo- 
gically  connected  with  East,  oriens,  and  who  there- 
fore was  in  all  probability  a  goddess  of  brightness 
and  splendour,  perhaps  also  a  Beorhte  or  Bright 
goddess :  she  may  have  been  a  goddess  of  light,  of 
the  morning  beams,  of  the  newly  awakening  year, 
when  the  sun  first  begins  to  recover  power  after  the 

'  The  name  of  Nerthus  stands  in  all  the  best  MSS.  of  Tacitus'  Ger- 
mania,  and  the  change  of  it  into  Herthus,  though  very  plausible,  was 
unnecessary.  One  easily  sees  the  cause  of  error  ;  it  was  thought  that 
Herthus,  terra  7nater,  was  the  Gothic  Airthus,  in  Old-german  Erdu,  in 
Anglosaxon  EorSe.  But  there  is  no  H  in  these  words ;  if  there  were 
we  should  have  had  a  Teutonic  Vesta.  The  goddess's  name  was  Nair- 
thus,  Nerdu,  Ner'Se,  and  her  corresponding  form  in  Old-norse,  Niordr. 


376  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

gloom  and  darkness  of  winter.  That  she  was  deeply 
impressed  upon  the  mind  and  feelings  of  the  peo- 
ple follows  from  her  name  having  been  retained  for 
the  great  festival  of  the  church:  it  may  also  be 
fairly  argued  that  she  was  a  mild  and  gentle  di- 
vinity, whom  the  clergy  did  not  fear  thus  to  com- 
memorate. 

Lye's  dictionary  cites  another  goddess,  Ricen, 
with  the  translation  Diana,  which  he  seems  to  have 
taken  from  some  Cotton  MS.  It  stands  too  iso- 
lated for  us  to  make  any  successful  investigation, 
but  I  may  be  excused  for  calling  to  mind  the  fact 
that  Diana  is  mentioned  by  the  versifying  chroni- 
clers as  among  the  Saxon  gods,  and  also  that 
the  superstition  known  in  Germany  as  the  "Wild 
Hunt,"  and  which  is  properly  connected  with  Wo- 
den, goes  very  generally  among  us  by  the  name  of 
Ludus  Dianae.  This,  which  became  the  founda- 
tion of  many  a  cruel  persecution,  under  the  name 
of  witchcraft,  is  spread  over  every  part  of  Germany  in 
one  form  or  another:  sometimes  it  is  [the  daughter  of] 
Herodias  who  is  compelled  for  ever  to  expiate  her  fatal 
dancing ;  at  other  times  we  have  Miner\'a  or  Bertha, 
Holda,  Habundia,  Dame  Abonde,  Domina,  Hera — 
the  Lady,  and  so  on.  It  is  true  that  our  fragmentary 
remains  of  Saxon  heathendom  do  not  contain  any 
immediate  allusions  to  this  superstition,  but  yet  it 
can  scarcely  be  doubted  that  it  did  exist  here  as  it 
did  in  every  part  of  the  continent^,  and  one  there- 

'  "  In  coutrariam  partem  est  auctoritas  decreti  xxvi.  9.  y.  c.  epi.  Ita 
ibi  legitur.  Illud  non  est  obmittendum,  quod  quedam  scelerate  iiiuli- 
eres  retro  post  Sathan  converse,  demonum  illusionibus  et  fantasma- 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.     MONSTERS.  377 

fore  would  not  willingly  decide  at  once  against  there 
having  been  some  deity  who  might  be  translated  by 
Diana  in  the  interpretatio  Bomana. 

FIENDS  and  MONSTEES.— The  community  of 
belief,  between  the  Germans  of  this  island,  of  the 
continent,  and  their  Scandinavian  kinsmen,  does 
not  appear  to  have  been  confined  to  the  beneficent 
gods  of  fertility  or  warlike  prowess.  In  the  noble 
poem  of  Beowulf  we  are  made  acquainted  with  a 
monstrous  fiend,  Grendel,  and  his  mother,  super- 
natural beings  of  gigantic  birth,  stature  and  dispo- 
sition, voracious  and  cruel,  feeding  upon  men,  and 
from  their  nature  incapable  of  being  wounded  with 
mortal  weapons.  The  triumph  of  the  hero  over 
these  unearthly  enemies  forms  the  subject  of  one 
half  the  poem.  But  Grendel,  who,  from  the  cha- 
racteristics given  above,  may  at  once  be  numbered 
among  the  rough,  violent  deities  of  nature,  the 
Jotnar^  of  the  North  and  Titans  of  classical  my- 
thology, is  not  without  other  records  :  in  two  or 
three  charters  we  find  places  bearing  his  name,  and 
it  is  remarkable  that  they  are  all  connected  more 
or  less  with  water,  while  the  poem  describes  his 
dwelling  as  a  cavern  beneath  a  lake,  peopled  with 

tibua  seducte/credunt  se  et  profitentur  cum  Diana  nocturnia  Boris  dea 
paganorum,  vel  cum  Herodiade  et  innumera  multitudine  mulierura, 
equitare  super  quasdam  bestias  et  multa  terrarum  spatia  intempeste 
noctis  silentio  pertransire,  eius  iussionibus  obedire  veluti  domine,  et 
certis  noctibus  ad  eius  servitium  evocari."  Hieroiiymi  Vieecomitis 
opusculum  Lamiarum  vel  Striarum.  Mediol.  1490.  John  of  Salisbury 
notices  this  iu  his  Polyczaticus,  and  Henry  More  in  his  Mystery  of 
Godliness.     See  Salom.  Sat.  p.  125,  seq. 

'  In  Beowulf  he  is  continually  called  Eoten. 


378  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  ,  [book  i. 

Mcors  and  other  supernatural  beings  of  a  fiendish 
character.  The  references  are  Grindles  pyt^,  Grin- 
dies  bece^,  and  Grendles  mere^.  Grimm,  by  a  com- 
parison of  philological  and  other  data,  identifies 
Grendel  with  the  Norse  Loki,  the  evil-bringer,  and 
in  the  end  destroyer  of  the  gods^.  The  early  con- 
certed Anglosaxons  who  possessed  another  devil  to 
oppose  to  the  Almighty  in  the  Ragnaravkr^,  could 
easily  reconcile  themselves  to  the  destruction  of 
Grendel  by  an  earthly  hero  ;  although  the  ancient 
heathendom  breaks  out  in  the  supernatural  powers 
attributed  to  the  latter,  and  which  placing  him  very 
near  the  rank  of  the  gods,  induce  a  belief  that  Beo- 
wulf contains  only  the  shadow  of  an  older  myth 
which  may  have  been  current  far  beyond  the  limits 
of  this  island  ^.  It  will  be  suflficient  to  call  atten- 
tion to  the  many  German  tales  in  which  the  devil's 
mother  figures  as  a  principal  actor,  nay  to  our  own 
familiar  expression,  the  devil's  dam,  to  show  how 
essential  this  characteristic  of  the  fiend  was :  the 
devil  of  the  Church  had  certainly  no  mother ;  but 
the  old  Teutonic  evil  spirit  had,  and  Loki  and 
Grendel  are  alike  in  this.  Even  the  religious  view, 
which  naturally  shaped  itself  to  other  influences, 
could  not  escape  the  essential  heathendom  of  this 
idea :  the  devil  who  is  so  constant  an  agent  in  the 
Anglosaxon  legends,  has,  if  not  a  mother,  at  least 
a  father,  no  less  than  Satan  himself;  but  Satan  lies 

>  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  59.  "  Ibid.  No.  570. 

»  Ibid.  No.  353.  «  Mytbologie,  p.  222. 

'  The  Devil  and  the  Pater  Noster  were  to  contend  together  at  Dooms- 
day :  each  was  to  assume  fifteen  different  forms.     Sal.  Sat.  p.  145. 
°  See  Beowulf,  ii.  Postscript,  and  the  Stammtafel  der  Westsachsen. 


CH.xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    MONSTERS,  379 

bound  in  hell,  as  Loki  lies  bound,  and  it  is  only  as 
his  emissary  and  servant  that  the  devil  his  son^  ap- 
pears on  earth,  to  tempt  and  to  destroy.  In  Csed- 
mon,  the  legend  of  St.  AndrevF,  Juliana,  Gii^lac, 
etc.,  it  is  always  the  devil's  son  and  satellite  vs'ho 
executes  his  work  on  earth,  and  returns  to  give  an 
account  of  his  mission  to  him  that  sent  him. 

Thus  throughout  the  strange  confusion  which 
besets  all  Anglosaxon  compositions  in  which  the 
devil  is  introduced  either  as  a  tempter  or  a  perse- 
cutor of  the  holy  and  just,  we  may  perceive  a  ray 
of  ancient  heathendom,  gloomy  enough,  no  doubt, 
but  far  less  miserable  than  the  vile  materialism  of 
the  notions  with  which  it  has  been  mixed  up.  The 
rude  Eoten  or  Titan  is  not  nearly  so  repugnant  to 
our  Christian  ideas  as  the  gross  corporeal  fiends 
who  have  grown  out  of  him,  and  who  play  so  con- 
spicuous a  part  in  Anglosaxon  hagiology  or  purgato- 
rial legends :  nor  is  it  easy  to  conceive  any  supersti- 
tion more  degrading  than  that  which  Eastern  or 
perhaps  even  Eoman  traditions  thus  engrafted  upon 
the  ancient  creed.  With  these  we  are  not  called 
upon  to  deal  in  any  further  detail,  for  though  they 


^  In  the  legend  of  Juliana,  the  suhordinate  devil  speaks  of  Satan  as 
his  father  and  Iring.  Cod.  Exon.  pp.  261,  273.  And  so  also  in  Salo- 
mon and  Saturn  (p.  141),  he  is  called  Satan's  thane.  Again,  in  the 
same  composition,  Satan  is  called  the  devil's  father  :  "  The  Pater  Nos- 
ter  will  shoot  the  devil  with  hoiling  shafts ;  and  the  lightning  will  burn 
and  mark  him,  and  the  rain  will  be  shed  over  him,  and  the  thick  dark- 
ness confuse  him,  and  the  thunder  thrash  him  with  the  fiery  axe,  and 
drive  him  to  the  iron  chain  wherein  his  father  dwelleth,  Satan  and  Sa- 
thiel. "p.  149.  In  the  legend  of  St.  Andrew,  Satan  himself  appears, 
which  may  be  owing  to  its  Greek  origin.  See  Vercelli  Poems,  Andr, 
1.  2388 :  still,  in  another  passage  Satan  sends  his  children.  Ibid.  1.  2692. 


380  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

have  no  claim  whatever  to  be  called  Christian,  they 
certainly  have  nothing  to  do  with  Anglosaxon  hea- 
thendom. The  Grendels  and  Nicors  of  our  fore- 
fathers were  gods  of  nature,  the  spirits  of  the  wood 
and  wave :  they  sunk  into  their  degraded  and  dis- 
gusting forms  only  when  the  devils  of  a  barbarous 
superstition  came  to  be  confounded  and  mixed  up 
with  them.  There  is  still  something  genuine  and 
poetical  in  the  account  which  a  monk  of  St.  Gall 
gives  of  the  colloquy  between  the  ancient  gods 
when  the  missionaries  settled  on  the  shores  of  the 
lake  of  Constance ;  when  in  the  dead  of  night,  the 
holy  anchoret  watching  at  his  nets. 

Heard  how  the  spirit  of  the  flood 
Spake  to  the  spirit  of  the  hill : 

"  Volvente  deinceps  cursu  temporis,  electus  Dei 
Gallus  retia  lymphae  laxabat  in  silentio  noctis,  sed 
inter  ea  audivit  demonem  de  culmine  mentis  pari 
suo  clamantem,  qui  erat  in  abditis  maris.  Quo  re- 
spondente,  'Adsum!'  montanus  e  contra:  'Surge,' 
inquit,  '  in  adiutorium  mihi !  Ecce  peregrini  vene- 
runt,  qui  me  de  templo  eiecerunt ;'  nam  Deos  conte- 
lebant,  quos  incolae  isti  colebant;  insuper  et  eos  ad 
se  convertebant ;  '  Veni,  veni,  adiuva  nos  expellere 
eos  de  terris!'  Marinus  demon  respondit:  'En  unus 
illorum  est  in  pelago,  cui  nunquam  nocere  potero. 
Volui  enim  retia  sua  ledere,  sed  me  victum  proba 
lugere.  Signo  orationis  est  semper  clausus,  nee 
umquam  somno  oppressus.'  Electus  vero  Gallus 
haec  audiens,  munivit  se  undique  signaculo  crucis, 
dixitque  ad  eos :  '  In  nomine  Jesu  Christi  praecipio 
vobis,  ut  de  locis  istis  recedatis,  nee  aliquem  hie 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.   MONSTERS.  881 

ledere  praesumatis ! '  Et  cum  festinatione  ad  littus 
rediit,  atque  abbati  suo,  quae  audierat,  recitavit. 
Quod  vir  Dei  Columbanus  audiens,  convocavit 
fratres  in  ecclesiam,  solitum  signuni  tangens.  O 
miia  dementia  diaboli !  voces  servorum  Dei  praeri- 
puit  vox  fantasmatica,  cum  heiulatus  atque  ululatus 
dirae  vocis  audiebatur  per  culmina  [montium^]." 

But  words  are  hardly  strong  enough  to  express 
the  feeling  with  which  an  educated  mind  contem- 
plates the  fantastical,  filthy  and  hideous  images 
which  gross  fanaticism  strove  to  force  into  the  ser- 
vice of  a  religion  whose  end  and  means  are  love  ; 
the  material  terrors  which  were  substituted  for  the 
sanctions  of  the  most  spiritual,  pure  and  holy  creed ; 
the  vulgar,  degrading  and  ridiculous  phantasma- 
goria devised  to  destroy  the  essential  selfishness 
and  impurity  of  men,  and  startle  them  into  justice 
and  righteousness  of  life  !  The  Teutonic  Titans, 
though  terrible  from  their  rude  strength,  and  dan- 
gerous even  to  the  gods  themselves,  are  neither 
disgusting  nor  degrading :  they  are  like  Chronos 
and  Saturn,  full  of  power  and  wisdom ;  they  are  in 
constant  warfare  with  the  gods,  because  the  latter 
are  the  representatives  of  a  more  humane  order; 
because  the  latter  was  more  civilised  :  but  as  the 
giant  race  were  mighty  at  the  beginning,  so  are  they 
to  triumph  at  the  end  of  the  world ;  and  it  is  only 
when  they  shall  have  succeeded  in  destroying  the 

'  Vit.  Anon.  Sci.  Galli.  Pertz,  Monum.  ii.  7.  Pertz  has  justly  called 
attention  to  the  metrical  form  of  this  colloquy.  It  is  deeply  to  be  la- 
mented that  we  uo  longer  possess  it  in  its  earliest  shape,  and  in  the 
language  of  its  earliest  composition. 


382  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

gods  of  0>inn's  race,  that  they  will  themselves  va- 
nish from  the  scene,  and  the  glorious  reign  of  All- 
father  commence.  Loki  alone  has  something  mean 
and  tricksey  in  his  character,  something  allied  to 
falsehood — a  slight  spice  of  the  Mephistopheles. 
But  it  is  not  probable  that  this  belongs  to  his  earliest 
form,  and  it  appears  rather  to  mark  the  deteriora- 
tion of  a  myth  becoming  popular,  and  assuming 
traits  of  the  popular,  humorous  spirit,  which  takes 
delight  in  seeing  power  counteracted  by  cunning, 
and  revenges  itself  for  the  perfection  of  its  heroes  by 
sometimes  exposing  them  to  ludicrous  defeat.  But 
even  Loki  was  at  first  the  friend  and  associate  of 
the  gods:  he  was  united  with  them  by  the  most 
sacred  bonds  of  brotherhood,  and  his  skill  and 
wisdom  secured  them  victory  in  many  a  dangerous 
encounter.  Like  Lucifer,  he  had  been  a  tenant  of 
heaven  :  why  he  and  the  gods  ultimately  parted  in 
anger  we  are  not  told ;  but  we  find  him  pursuing 
them  with  the  utmost  malice,  till  at  length  he 
causes  the  death  of  Baldr.  He  is  then  bound  and 
cast  beneath  the  worlds,  the  poisonous  snake  hangs 
over  him  distilling  torturing  venom :  his  faithful 
wife  sits  by  and  catches  the  drops  as  they  fall,  but 
when  the  vessel  in  which  she  receives  them  is  full 
and  she  turns  for  a  moment  to  empty  it,  the  deadly 
juice  reaches  the  prostrate  god,  and  in  his  agony 
he  trembles  in  every  limb.  This  convulsion  is 
known  to  men  as  the  earthquake.  It  is  only  in  the 
twilight  of  the  gods  that  he  will  break  his  chain  and 
lead  the  sons  of  Muspel  to  avenge  him  upon  the 
race  of  Oj^tnn. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENI)O.AI.    DEVIL.  383 

But  Loki  is  no  devil  in  the  Anglosaxon  sense  of 
Satan  and  his  son ;  he  is  no  deceiver  or  persecutor 
of  men  ;  least  of  all  is  he  their  torturer  in  another 
world.  He  suffers  indeed,  but  like  Prometheus,  or 
Entelechus,  or  ^geon,  and  his  hour  of  triumph  is 
to  come.  There  is  in  his  genuine  character  nothing 
mean  or  little, — much  indeed  that  is  terrible,  gloomy 
and  vague,  but  nothing  ridiculous  or  disgusting. 
The  Saxon  devil  with  horns,  tail,  cloven  feet,  sul- 
phur and  pitch,  torches,  red-hot  tongs,  pincers  and 
pitchforks  is  less  creditable  to  the  imagination, 
and  more  dangerous  to  the  moral  being,  of  his  in- 
ventors. 

Nor  are  the  occupations  of  such  a  fiend  less  vul- 
gar than  his  form  :  he  blasts  the  corn,  wounds  the 
cattle,  fetters  the  hands  of  the  doomed,  enters  the 
mouth  of  those  who  have  not  guarded  it  by  the  sign 
of  the  cross,  and  in  a  future  state  becomes  the 
torturer — in  the  most  material  and  mechanical  way 
— of  those  whose  life  has  been  spent  in  the  service 
of  sin.  The  coarse  fancy  of  Marlowe  himself  halts 
after  the  descriptions  of  the  Anglosaxon  divines  and 
poets,  revelling  in  this  fruitful  theme.  Unpleasant 
as  such  records  are,  and  revolting  to  our  sense  of 
right,  it  is  necessary  that  we  should  Icnow  what  was 
taught  or  permitted  by  the  clergy,  if  we  are  to  know 
anything  of  the  mode  of  life  and  mode  of  belief  of 
our  forefathers. 

As  early  even  as  the  eighth  century,  we  find  so 
great  a  man  as  Beda  condescending  to  admit  into 
his  ecclesiastical  history,  such  melancholy  evidence 
of  Manichsean  materialism  as  the  vision  of  Driht- 


384  THE  SAXOXS  IN  KNGLAND.  [book  i. 

helm.  He  tells  how  such  a  man  in  Northumbria, 
lying  at  the  point  of  death,  had  fallen  into  a  trance, 
recovering  from  which  and  being  restored  to  health, 
he  had  entered  the  monastery  of  Mebose,  in  which 
he  continued  till  his  death.  During  his  trance  he 
had  seen  visions  which  he  afterwards  communicated 
to  Hamgisl  a  priest,  Aldfri^  king  of  the  Northum- 
brians, and  others.  He  related  that  on  being  re- 
leased from  the  body  his  soul  had  been  led  by  one, 
bright  of  aspect,  gloriously  clothed,  towards  the 
east,  into  a  valley  wide  and  deep  and  of  a  length 
that  seemed  infinite :  one  side  glowed  terribly  with 
flames,  the  other  was  filled  with  furious  hail  and 
freezing  snow.  Either  side  was  full  of  human  souls 
which  were  tossed  from  left  to  right  as  by  a  tem- 
pest. For  when  they  could  not  bear  the  violence 
of  the  immense  heat,  they  rushed  wretchedly  into 
the  midst  of  the  dreadful  cold ;  and  when  they 
could  find  no  rest  there,  they  sprung  back  again, 
again  to  burn  in  the  midst  of  inextinguishable 
flames.  When  Drihthelm  saw  them  thus  eternally 
tormented  by  a  crowd  of  deformed  demons,  he 
thought  within  himself,  "  This  is  surely  hell,  of 
whose  intolerable  tortures  I  have  often  heard  tell !" 
But  his  companion  said,  "This  is  not  the  hell  thou 
thinkest!"  and  proceeding  further,  he  beheld  how 
the  darkness  began  to  thicken  around  and  fill  the 
whole  space  before  him.  Suddenly  in  this  deep 
night  he  perceived  globes  of  dusky  fire  cast  up  from 
what  seemed  to  be  a  vast  well,  into  which  they 
fell  again,  without  intermission.  In  the  midst  of 
these  horrors  his  conductor  left  him.     On  looking 


CH.  XII.]  HKATHBXDOM.    DEVIL.  385 

more  intently,  he  now  perceived  that  the  tongues 
of  fire  were  all  full  of  human  souls,  tossed  aloft  like 
sparks  in  smoke,  and  then  dragged  back  into  the 
abyss.  And  an  incomparable  stench,  which  bub- 
bled up  with  the  vapours,  filled  all  those  abodes 
of  darkness.  Around  him  sounded  the  shouts  and 
taunts  of  fiends,  like  a  vulgar  mob  exulting  over 
a  captive  enemy  :  suddenly  a  host  of  evil  spirits 
dragged  through  the  darkness  five  souls,  one  of  a 
laic,  one  of  a  woman,  one  tonsured  like  a  cleric,  and 
plunged  them  into  the  abyss  amidst  a  confused  roar 
of  lamentation  and  laughter.  Then  certain  malig- 
nant spirits  ascending  from  the  deep,  surrounded 
the  trembling  spectator,  terrifying  him  with  their 
flaming  eyes  and  the  fire  which  burst  from  their 
mouths  and  noses,  and  threatening  to  seize  him 
with  fiery  pincers  which  they  held  in  their  hands. 
From  this  danger  he  was  rescued  by  the  return  of 
his  companion,  who  conducted  him  to  two  corre- 
sponding regions  of  eternal  bliss,  every  one  of  whose 
details  is  in  the  strongest  contrast  to  those  already 
described,  but  just  as  material,  as  gross  and  sen- 
sual. The  moral  of  this  is  too  important  to  be 
given  in  any  but  Beda's  own  words.  "  And  when, 
on  our  return,  we  had  reached  those  happy  man- 
sions of  spirits  clothed  in  white,  he  said  unto  me, 
'  Knowest  thou  what  all  these  things  are  which 
thou  hast  beheld  1 '  I  answered,  '  No.'  Then  said 
he,  '  The  valley  which  thou  sawest,  horrible  with 
its  boiling  flames  and  its  stiff  cold,  that  is  the  place 
where  shall  be  tried  and  chastised  the  souls  of  those 
men,  who  delaying  to  confess  and  to  amend  their 
VOL.  I.  2  c 


386  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

sins,  yet  fly  to  penitence  in  the  hour  of  death,  and 
thus  leave  the  body :  yet  since  they  had  confession 
and  penance  even  in  death,  shall  all,  at  the  day  of 
judgment,    reach    the  kingdom   of  heaven.      But 
many,  both  the  prayers  of  the  living,  and  their  alms 
and  fasts,  and  most  of  all  the  celebration  of  masses, 
assist,  so  that  they  shall  be  freed  even  before  the 
day  of  judgment.     But  that  flame-belching,  putrid 
well  which  thou  hast  seen  is  the  mouth  of  hell  it- 
self, into  which  whoever  shall  fall,  shall  never  be 
set  free  for  ever  and  ever.     And  that  flowery  place 
in  which  thou  sawest  those  most  beauteous  youths 
enjoy  themselves  in  splendour,  is  that  wherein  are 
received  the  souls  of  those  who  indeed  leave  the 
body  in  good  works,  but  yet  are  not  of  such  per- 
fection that  they  may  at  once  enter  the  kingdom  of 
heaven;  who  yet  shall  all,  in  the  day  of  judgment, 
enter  into  the  sight  of  Christ,  and  the  joys  of  the 
heavenly  kingdom.     For  they  who  are  perfect  in 
every  word  and  act  and  thought,  immediately  on 
leaving  the  body  shall  reach  the  heavenly  king- 
dom ;  to  whose  precincts  that  place  belonged,  where 
thou  heardest  the  sound  of  pleasant  singing,  toge- 
ther with  the  smell  of  sweetness  and  the  splendour 
of  light^.'  "  Having  thus  seen  and  heard,  Drihthelm 
was  allowed  to  return  to  the  body,  where  no  doubt 
he-  became    a   powerful   champion   of  Purgatory, 
But  Beda  is  not  satisfied  with  this  tale :  he  goes 
on  to  tell  of  a  Mercian  noble,  who  would  not  go 
to  confession.     At  the  point  of  death,  be  sees  two 

'  Beda,  H.  E.  v.  12. 


CH.xn,]  HEATHENDOM.    DEVIL.  387 

angels  enter  his  room,  bearing  the  record  of  his 
good  deeds,  which  fill  but  a  small  roll :  having 
caused  him  to  read  this,  they  make  way  for  a 
crowd  of  fiends,  black  and  foul,  who  bear  the  enor- 
mous tale  of  his  sins  of  word,  work  and  thought, 
which  also  he  is  compelled  to  read.  Then  the  leader 
of  the  fiends  turning  to  the  sons  of  light  exclaims, 
"  Why  sit  ye  here,  knowing  assuredly  that  he  is 
ours  ? "  to  which  they  reply,  "  Ye  say  truly :  take 
him,  and  lead  him  with  you  into  the  accumulation  of 
your  own  damnation !  "  Upon  this  the  good  spirits 
vanish,  and  two  demons,  a  sort  of  Occidental  Mun- 
kir  and  Nekir,  smite  him  with  ploughshares  on  the 
head  and  feet,  and  creep  into  him ;  when  they  meet 
within  him,  he  dies  and  passes  into  everlasting 
torments  1.  This  tale,  which  Beda  heard  from  the 
venerable  bishop  Pecthelm^,  he  refines  upon,  ex- 
plains, and  finishes  by  declaring  that  he  relates  it 
simply  for  the  salvation  of  those  who  shall  read 
or  hear  it.  No  doubt  the  distempered  ravings  of 
monks,  made  half  mad  by  inhuman  austerities,  un- 
natural restrictions,  and  wretched  themes  of  con-- 
templation,  would  in  themselves  be  of  little  worth : 
we  can  comprehend  the  visions  of  a  Saint  Francis 
de  Salis,  an  Ignatius  Loyola,  a  Peter  the  Hermit,  a 
Santa  Theresa,  and  even  more  readily  those  of  a 
Drihthelm  or  a  Madame  Guyon :  but  how  shall 

'  Beda,  H.  E.  v.  13. 

^  The  first  Bishop  of  Whiterne  in  Galloway,  who  died  in  737.  Any 
one  who  desires  to  learn  more  of  the  miserable  superstitions  which  Beda 
could  recommend,  may  see  the  account  of  Fursaeus  (H.  E.  iii.  19),  and 
the  MS.  lives  of  the  saint  of  which  Mr.  Steyeuson  has  given  a  notice 
in  his  edition  of  Beda,  pp.  197,  199,  notep. 

2  C2 


388  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND,  [book  i. 

we  understand  the  record  of  them  by  a  Beda  or  a 
Fenelon  1 

Such  authority  as  this  was  likely  to  be  followed 
with  zeal ;  once  open,  the  career  of  unbridled  fancy 
was  sure  to  find  no  limit;  the  more  sure,  since 
then,  as  now,  the  fears  and  miseries  of  the  mass 
were  sources  of  profit  to  the  few.  Then,  as  now, 
there  were  rogues  found  who  dared  to  step  between 
man  and  God,  to  clothe  themselves  in  the  coat 
without  seam,  to  make  themselves  the  mediators 
between  eternal  mercy  and  the  perishing  sinner. 
Accordingly  in  later  times  we  find  variation  upon 
variation  in  the  outline  already  so  vigorously 
sketched;  William  ofMalmesbury  furnishes  an  ample 
field  for  collectors  of  this  kind  of  literature.  I  shall 
content  myself  here  with  citing  from  the  so  often 
quoted  Salomon  and  Saturn  two  passages,  which  to 
me  are  redolent  of  heathendom,  disguised  after  the 
fashion  which  has  been  described. 

Mseg  simle  se  Godes  cwLde  Ever  may  the  God's  word' 

gumena  gehwylcum,  for  every  man, 

ealra  feonda  gehwone  every  fiend 

flednde  gebringan,  put  to  flight, 

Surh  mannes  miiS,  through,  mouth  of  man, 

manfulra  heap  the  troop  of  evil  ones, 

sweartne  geswencan  ;  the  black  troop,  oppress ; 

nsefre  hie  Sees  syllfoe  let  them  never  so  strangely 

bleoum  bregdatS  change  their  colours 

sefter  bancofan,  in,,  their  body, 

feSerhoman  onfoS.  or  assume  plumage. 

Hwilum  flotan  gri'paS,  Sometimes  they  seize  the  sailor, 

hwilum  hie  gewendaS  sometimes  they  turn 

'  That  is,  the  Paternoster. 


CH.  xn.J 


HEATHENDOM.    NICOE. 


389 


on  Wynnes  lie 
Boearpes  and  stiooles, 
stinga'c?  nften 
foldgongendc, 
feoli  gestrudaS  ; 
hwilum  hie  on  "waetere 
wiog  gehn^gaS, 
hornum  geheawa^ 
oSSset  him  heortan  blod, 
famig  iiodes  beeS, 
foldan  geseoeS. 
H-wilum  hie  gefeteraS 
feeges  moanes  handa, 
gehefegaS  Sonne  he 
set  hilde  soeall 
wis  laSwerud 
lifes  tiligan  : 

dwritaS  hie  on  his  waepne 
waelnota  heap. 


into  the  body  of  a  snake 
sharp  and  piercing, 
they  sting  the  neat 
going  about  the  fields, 
the  cattle  they  destroy ; 
sometimes  in  the  water 
they  bow  the  horse, 
with  horns  they  hew  him 
until  his  heart's  blood, 
a  foaming  bath  of  flood, 
falls  to  the  earth. 
Sometimes  they  fetter 
the  hands  of  the  doomed, 
they  make  them  heavy  when  he 
is  called  upon  in  war, 
against  a  hostile  troop 
to  provide  for  his  life  : 
they  write  upon  his  weapon 
a  fatal  heap  of  marks  i- 


Again  we  are  told,  in  the  same  composition : 
"  And  when  the  devil  is  very  weary  he  seeketh  the 
cattle  of  some  sinful  man,  or  an  unclean  tree ;  or 
if  he  meeteth  the  mouth  and  hody  of  a  man  that 
hath  not  been  blessed  with  the  sign  of  the  cross, 
then  goeth  he  into  the  bowels  of  the  man  who  hath 
so  forgotten,  and  through  his  skin  and  through  his 
flesh  departeth  into  the  earth,  and  from  tnence 
findeth  his  way  into  the  desert  of  helP." 

NICOE. — To  the  class  of  elemental  gods  must 
originally  have  been  reckoned  the  Nicor,  or  water- 
spirit,  whose  name  has  not  only  been  retained  m  the 
Water  Nixes  of  our  own  country,  and  in  the  Neck 


'  Sal.  Sat.  pp.  143,  144. 


'  Ibid.  p.  149. 


390  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  Germany,  but  in  our  own  common  name  for  the 
devil.  Old  Nick.  According  to  the  account  given  in 
Beovi'ulf,  these  Avere  supernatural,  elvish  creatures 
haunting  the  lakes,  rivers  and  seas,  ever  on  the 
vyatch  to  injure  the  v\?ayfarer,  and  apparently  en- 
dowed with  the  power  of  creating  tempests.  In  this 
semi-Christian  view  they  were  fiendish  and  savage 
enemies  of  the  sailor,  whom  they  pursued  with  horns 
and  tusks,  dragged  to  the  bottom  of  the  waves  and 
then  no  doubt  devoured i.  Probably,  like  other  su- 
pernatural beings  dreaded  by  our  forefathers,  they 
were  included  in  the  family  of  ogres  and  monsters 
descended  from  the  first  homicide.  Yet  it  may  be 
doubted  whether  this  was  the  original  and  heathen 
sense  of  the  word  Nicor.  As  late  as  the  thirteenth 
century  I  find  in  an  old  German  glossary  Neckar 
translated  by  Neptunus,  the  god  of  the  sea ;  and  it 
is  notorious  that  one  of  the  names  borne  by  Ojjinn, 
whenever  he  appears  as  a  sea-god  is  Hniku);r  and 
Nikuz.  Hence  it  is  not  unlikely  that  in  their 
ancient  creed,  the  pagan  Saxons  recognized  Nicer 
as  Woden.  The  name  Hwala  which  occurs  in  the 
genealogies,  and  like  Geat  may  be  assumed  to  be 
only  another  name  of  Woden,  confirms  this  view. 
Hwala  is  formed  from  Hwsel,  cetus,  just  as  Scyldwa 
is  from  Scyld,  clypeus,  and  was  probably  only  a 
name  of  Woden  as  a  sea-god.  The  danger  attend- 
ing the  whale  or  walrus  fishery  ^  made  the  first  at 
least  of  these  animals  an  object  of  superstitious 

'  Beowulf,  passim, 

'  The  fislierman  in^lfric's  dialogue  disclaims  any  intention  of  whale- 
iisHng,  on  account  of  its  dangers.     Thorpe,  Anal.  p.  24 


CH.  XH.]  HEATHENDOM.    NIOOB.  391 

dread  to  the  Anglosaxon  sailor ;  perhaps,  as  in  the 
dase  of  the  bear,  natural  peculiarities  which  are 
striking  enough  even  to  our  more  scientific  eyes, 
helped  to  give  an  exceptional  character  to  the  mo- 
narch of  the  Northern  seas.  Be  this  as  it  may,  it 
is  not  without  importance  that  Hwala  should  appear 
in  the  genealogies  among  names  many  of  Avhich 
are  indisputably  Woden's,  that  in  Scandinavia  and 
Germany  Nikuz  or  Necker  should  be  names  of  the 
sea-god,  and  that  till  a  very  late  period, — when 
the  heathen  gods  had  everywhere  assumed  the  garb 
of  fiends  and  devils, — the  Nicor  should  appear  as 
the  monster  of  the  deep  far  excellence.  The  mira- 
culous power  attributed  to  the  Nicor, — in  Beowulf 
he  is  called  "  wundorlic  weegbora,"  a  supernatural 
bringer  of  the  waves, — is  in  itself  evidence  of  earlier 
godhead ;  and  in  this  sense  I  am  disposed  to  identify 
him  with  the  demon  marinus  whom  St.  Gall  defeated 
by  his  constant  watchfulness.  In  his  altered  and 
degraded  form  we  may  also  recognize  the  demon  of 
the  lines  lately  cited,  who  stabs  the  horse  with  his 
horns  while  crossing  the  water.  The  beautiful  Nix 
or  Nixie  who  allures  the  young  fisher  or  hunter  to 
seek  her  embraces  in  the  wave  which  brings  his 
death,  the  Neck  who  seizes  upon  and  drowns  the 
maidens  who  sport  upon  his  banks,  the  river-spirit 
who  still  yearly  in  some  parts  of  Germany  demands 
tribute  of  human  life,  are  all  forms  of  the  ancient 
Nicor;  but  more  genuine  perhaps, — certainly  more 
pleasing, — is  the  Swedish  Stromkarl,  who  from 
the  jewelled  bed  of  his  river,  watches  with  delight 
the  children  gambol  in  the  adjoining  meadows,  and 


392  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

singing  sweetly  to  them  in  the  evening,  detaches 
from  his  hoary  hair  the  sweet  blossoms  of  the 
water-lily,  which  he  wafts  over  the  surface  to  their 
hands. 

HEL. — Among  the  fearful  beings  whose  power 
was  dreaded  even  by  the  gods,  was  Hel,  mistress  of 
the  cold  and  joyless  under-world.  Called,  through 
the  fate  of  battle,  to  the  glories  of  Wselheal,  the 
Teutonic  or  Norse  hero  trembled  at  a  peaceful 
death  which  would  consign  him  to  a  dwelling 
more  desolate  and  wretched  than  even  that  which 
awaited  the  fallen  warriors  of  heroic  Greece  i,  and 
many  a  legend  tells  of  those  whose  own  hand  saved 
them  from  a  futurity  so  abhorred^.  But  Hel  was  not 
herself  the  agent  of  death  ;  she  only  received  those 

'  Odyssey,  book  xi. 

^  This  is  so  completely  familiar  to  the  student  of  antiquity,  that  I 
shall  not  multiply  examples  :  they  may  he  found  in  Bartholinus.  But 
one  instance  I  may  be  excused  for  citing',  inasmuch  as  it  proves  how 
long  the  heathen  spirit  suryived  despite  the  peaceful  hope  and  promise 
of  Christianity.  Henry  of  Huntingdon,  in  the  sixth  book  of  his  history, 
relates  of  Sigeweard  the  great  duke  of  Northumberland,  that  hearing 
of  the  loss  of  his  son  in  battle,  he  exclaimed,  "  Recepitne  vulnus  le- 
thale  in  anteriori  vel  posteriori  corporis  parte  ?  Dixerunt  nuntii :  In 
anteriori.  At  ille  :  Gaudeo  plane,  non  enim  alio  me,  vel  filium  meum 
digner  funere."  In  1055  however,  oppressed  with  sickness,  he  found 
that  his  desire  was  not  to  be  fulfilled.  "  Siwardus,  consul  rigidissimus, 
profluvio  veutris  ductus,  mortem  sensit  imminere,  dixitque :  Quantus 
pudor  me  tot  in  bellis  mori  non  potuisse,  ut  vaccarum  morti  cum  de- 
decore  reservarer !  Induite  me  saltern  lorica  mea  impenetrabili,  prae- 
cingite  gladio,  sublimate  galea  :  scutum  in  laeva,  securim  auratam  mihi 
ponite  in  dextra,  ut  militum  fortissimus  modo  militis  moriar.  Dixerat, 
et,  ut  dixerat,  armatus  honorifice  spiritum  exhalavit."  Through  every 
word  of  this  passage  breathes  the  old  heathen  spirit  of  Haralldr  Hil- 
ditavn,  and  one  feels  that  to  Christianity  alone  it  was  owing,  that  Sige- 
weard did  not  prevent  an  inglorious  by  a  voluntary  violent  death. 


CH.xii.]  HEATHENDOM.     HEL.  393 

who  had  not  earned  their  seat  in  0]jinn's  hall  by  a 
heroic  fall,  and  the  "Wselcyrian  or  Shieldmays  were 
the  choosers  of  the  slain.  The  realm  of  Hel  was  all 
that  Wselheal  was  not, — cold,  cheerless,  shadowy ; 
no  simulated  war  was  there,  from  which  the  com- 
batants desisted  with  renovated  strength  and  glory ; 
no  capacious  quaighs  of  mead,  or  cups  of  the  life- 
giving  wine;  no  feast  continually  enjoyed  and  mi- 
raculously reproduced  ;  no  songs  nor  narratives  of 
noble  deeds ;  no  expectation  of  the  last  great  battle 
where  the  einherjar  were  to  accompany  Allfather  to 
meet  his  gigantic  antagonists ;  no  flashing  Shield- 
mays  animating  the  brave  with  their  discourse,  and 
lightening  the  hall  with  their  splendour :  but  chill 
and  ice,  frost  and  darkness  ;  shadowy  realms  with- 
out a  sun,  without  song  or  wine  or  feast,  or  the 
soul-inspiring  company  of  heroes,  glorying  in  the 
great  deeds  of  their  worldly  life. 

For  the  perjurer  and  the  secret  murderer  Na- 
strond  existed,  a  place  of  torment  and  punishment 
— the  strand  of  the  dead — filled  with  foulness, 
peopled  with  poisonous  serpents,  dark,  cold,  and 
gloomy:  the  kingdom  of  Hel  M'as  Hades,  the  in- 
visible, the  world  of  shadows  ^ :  Nastrond  was  what 
we  call  Hell.  Christianity  however  admitted  no 
goddess  of  death,  and  when  it  was  thought  neces- 
sary to  express  the  idea  of  a  place  of  punishment 
after  death,  the  Anglosaxon  united  the  realm  of 

'  So  tlie  Greeks : 

Has  eVXijs  "Ai'Soorfie  KarekBefxev,  iv6a  re  v(Kpa\ 
* A<l)pab€€s  vaiovaij  fiporaiv  etStoXa  Kay^ovrav, 

Odyss.  xi.  473, 


394  THK  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Hel  with  Nastrond  to  complete  a  hideous  prison 
for  the  guilty :  the  prevailing  idea  in  the  infernal 
regions  of  the  Teuton  is  cold  and  gloom  i;  the  poi- 
sonous snakes,  which  waking  or  sleeping  seem  ever 
to  have  haunted  the  Anglosaxon,  formed  a  conve- 
nient point  of  junction  between  his  own  traditional 
hell  and  that  which  he  heard  of  from  the  pulpit, 
in  quotations  from  the  works  of  the  Fathers ;  and 
to  these  and  their  influence  alone  can  it  be  attri- 
buted when  we  find  flames  and  sulphur,  and  all  the 
hideous  apparatus  of  Judaic  tradition,  adopted  by 
him.  In  this  fact  seems  to  me  to  lie  a  very  import- 
ant mark  of  ancient  heathendom,  and  one  which  the 
clergy  themselves  admitted,  a  belief  in  which  they 
shared,  and  which  they  did  not  scruple  to  impress 
upon  their  flocks,  even  in  spite  of  the  contrary  ten- 
dency of  their  authorities :  it  will  be  sufficient  to 
refer  to  the  description  given  of  hell  in  the  poetic 
Salomon  and  Saturn,  a  composition  redolent  of 
heathendom  :  on  the  defeat  of  the  rebel  angels,  it 
is  said,  God 

him  helle  gescop,  for  them  he  made  hell, 

■wselcealde  wic,  a  dwelling  deadly  cold, 

wintre  heSeahte :  with  winter  covered  : 

waster  insende  water  he  sent  in 

and  wyrmgeardas,  and  snake-dwellings, 

atol  deor  monig  many  a  foul  beast 

irenum  hornum ;  with  horns  of  iron ; 

blodige  eamas  bloody  eagles 

and  blace  nsedran ;  and  pale  adders ; 

1  Fire  was  too  cheerful  in  the  North  to  he  sufficiently  an  object  of 
terror :  it  appeared  otherwise  in  the  East,  where  coolness  is  the  greatest 
of  luxuries. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    HEL.  395 

first  and  hungor  thirst  and  hunger 

and  fearle  gewin,  and  fierce  conflict, 

eacne  egesan,  mighty  terror, 

unrotnisse.  joylessness'. 

Even  in  their  more  orthodox  descriptions,  eccle- 
siastical poets,  though  naturally  adopting  the  Ju- 
daic notions,  cannot  always  shake  off  the  old,  ha- 
bitual tradition  of  their  forefathers,  but  recur  to 
the  frost,  gloom  and  serpents  of  Nastrond,  and  the 
realm  of  Hel ;  of  which  a  passage  already  quoted 
from  Beda  is  ample  evidence. 

As  far  as  we  can  judge  from  the  descriptions 
which  survive,  the  Anglosaxons  represented  Hell  to 
themselves  as  a  close  and  covered  dwelling,  a  prison 
duly  secured  as  earthly  prisons  are  by  locks,  bolts 
and  bars^.  But  the  popular  fancy  had  probably 
even  then  adopted  the  notion  of  a  monstrous  beast 
whose  mouth  was  the  entrance  to  the  place  of  tor- 
ment :  this  appears  not  only  from  the  illustrations 
to  Ceedmon^,  but  from  the  common  expression,  so 
long  current,  of  Hell-mouth.  From  this  peculiar 
feature  however  we  may  believe  that  a  remembrance 
still  lurked  among  our  forefathers  of  the  gigantic 
or  Titanic  character  of  the  ancient  goddess,  who,  in 
Norse  mythology,  was  Loki's  daughter.  In  nearly 
every  case,  the  word  Hel  in  Anglosaxon,  and  espe- 
cially Anglosaxon  prose,  has  merely  the  abstract 
sense  we  now  give  it ;  but  here  and  there  a  passage 

1  Sal.  Sat.  p.  173. 

^  Beda  himself  speaks  of  "  inferni  claustra  "  (H.  E.  v.  13),  and  for 
this  there  was  supposed  to  he  sufficient  authority  in  the  figurative  ex- 
pression, Matt.  xvi.  18. 

'  Published  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 


396  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

may  be  found  in  which  we  discover  traces  of  the 
personal  meaning :  thus  perhaps  in  Beowulf  where 
we  find  these  lines, 

siggan  dredmaleas  when  reft  of  joy 

in  fenfreoSo  in  his  fen-refuge 

feorh'  alegde,  he  his  life  laid  down, 

hteSene  sawle,  his  heathen  soul, 

Sser  him  Hel  onfeng.  there  Hel  received  him  ^ 

However  as  a  death  in  battle  did  not  consign 
the  warrior  to  Hel,  it  is  usually  Hild  or  Wig  who 
is  represented  as  ravishing  away  the  doomed  hero. 
Hel  was  no  desired  object,  to  be  introduced  into 
the  epic  as  the  portion  of  chieftains  and  kings. 

FATES. — The  Northern  creed,  and,  as  it  now 
seems  established,  the  German  also,  admitted  the 
intervention  between  man  and  the  gods,  of  subor- 
dinate deities  or  Fates.  I  call  them  subordinate  from 
their  peculiar  position  in  the  fragmentary  portions 
of  mythology  that  survive ;  in  their  nature  we  must 
believe  them  to  be  of  a  higher  order  than  the  gods, 
who  themselves  are  doomed  one  day  to  perish,  and 
who  can  probably  as  little  avoid  their  doom  as  men, 
the  frailer  creatures  of  their  power.  It  may  be  that 
in  this,  different  views  prevailed  among  different 
classes  of  men ;  the  warlike  princes  and  their  fol- 
lowers, who  exulted  in  tales  of  battle  and  feasting, 
may  have  been  willing  to  see  in  0))inn  the  supreme 
disposer  of  events,  while  a  deeper  wisdom  lurked 

'  Beow.  1.  1698 :  and  perhaps  similarly  1.  357,  "  Helle  gemundon," 
they  worshipped  Hel. 


CH.  XII.]  HEATflENDOM.     FATES.  397 

in  the  sacerdotal  songs  that  told  how  Ur'Sr,  Wer- 
^andi  and  Skuld  (the  Norns  of  the  Past,  the  Pre- 
sent and  the  Future)  bore  inevitable  sway  over  the 
inhabitants  of  heaven  and  earth,  and  slowly  waited 
for  the  period  which  was  to  confound  gods,  man  and 
nature  in  one  vast  destruction^.  The  Norse  view 
admits  however  of  more  than  three  Norns,  though 
it  names  those  only  who  have  been  mentioned ; 
and  from  the  extraordinary  relation  of  those  three, 

'  The  Greek  Fates  are  also  three,  and  stand  in  a  very  similar  posi- 
tion towards  the  Gods.  Zeus  himself  is  not  exempt  fi-om  their  power. 
Prometheus,  it  is  true,  will  not  distinctly  assert  Zeus  to  be  weaker  than 
the  Fates,  hut  he  answers  very  decisively  that  even  Zeus  cannot  escape 
his  Fate. 

Xo.  Tiff  oiiv  avayKr]s  efrriv  OLaKoa'Tp6<f)os  J 
Up.  Moipai  Tpip.op(pai,  fivrj^oi/es  r  *Epivvv€s. 
Xo.  TovTtDv  apa  Zevs  €<ttiv  dadevea-repos  J 
Up.   OijKOVV  &v  eKCJivyoi  ye  ttjv  -rreTrpoipevrjv. 

^SCH.  Prom.  Vin.  617-520. 
The  Moipai  here  are  only  ministers  of  a  deeper  necessity,  yet  they  seem 
to  wield  it  themselves,  and  that  it  is  inseparable  from  justice  seems  to 
follow  from  the  venerable  goddesses  being  joined  in  the  task  Plato 
however  distinctly  names  three  Moipai,  the  daughters  of  'AvdyKr;,  who 
spin  the  life  of  man :  what  is  more  to  our  purpose  is  that  to  each  of  the 
three,  the  past,  the  present  and  the  future  are  severally  distributed, 
as  to  Ur«r,  Wer'Sandi  and  Skuld.  He  says,  aX\as  fie  Kae-qp.ivas  nepi^ 
fii'  la-ov  rpels,  if  6p6va  eitda-Trjv,  dvyarepas  rrjs  'AmyKrjs,  Moipas,  Xeu- 
Xeip-ovova-as,  (rT€p.p,aTa  ini  rmv  Ke(j)d\wv  e^ouo-as,  Adxea-cv  T€  koI  KXadco 
■Kai  ATptmov,  vfiveiv  irpos  rfjv  rav  'Eeiprfvav  dppoviav,  Ad)^e(nv  pen  to. 
yeyovoTa,  KXojflo)  fie  ra  ovra,  "ArpoTrov  fie  ra  peXKovra.  The  spindle 
however  lies  and  revolves  upon  the  knees  of  'AvdyKri.  De  Repub.  lib.  x. 
ad  fin.  The  white  garments,  garlands  and  throne,  as  well  as  the  singing, 
are  wanting  to  our  Is^oms,  but  the  resemblance  in  other  respects  is  very 
striking.  It  deserves  notice  also  that  the  Weird  sisters  in  Macbeth  are 
three ;  and  even  the  Odyssey  may  intend  that  number, 

€v6a  S*  eneCTa 
jretfrerai,  dacra  ol  ai(ra,  KaraKKades  re  ^apeiat^ 
yeivopeva  vr](raVTo  XtVo),  oVe  ptv  reKe  prjrrjp. 

Odyss.  vii.  196-198. 
It  is  well  known  what  controversy  has  arisen  as  to  the  real  number  of 
'Epivnes  intended  by  .iEschylus  in  his  Eumenides. 


898  THE  SAXONS  JN  ENGLAND.  [book  t. 

it  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  the  others  are  of  a 
different  order ;  moreover  it  attributes  human  pas- 
sions to  them  which  are  hardly  consistent  with  the 
functions  of  the  venerable  Fates ;  in  this  case  it  is 
possible  that  the  Valkyriur,  a  race  of  beings  whose 
functibns  might  in  some  respects  be  confounded  with 
those  of  the  Nornir,  have  been  so  mixed  up  with 
them.     Man,  dealing  with  the  daily  affairs  of  trou- 
bled life,  thinks  more  of  the  past  than  of  the  future : 
to  him  the  present  is  the  child  of  the  past,  the  past 
the  excuse  for  or  cause  of  all  he  does  and  suffers  ; 
his  intellect  comprehends  the  events  that  are  com- 
pleted or  in  course  of  completion,  but  not  the  inde- 
finite, illimitable  probabilities  of  the  undiscovered 
to  be;  hence  perhaps  UrSr  is  considered  the  old- 
est and  most  powerful  of  the  Fates ;  her  work  is 
done,  the  others  are  doing  or  yet  to  do.     Through 
this  progress  of  opinion  it  became  possible  for  the 
conception  of  the  older  Fate  to  include  and  finally 
supersede  those  of  the  others,  as  soon  as  the  living 
belief  in  their  personal  agency  became  weakened. 
I  do  not  know  that  any  certain  trace  of  these  Fates 
can  be  found  in  the  High-german  countries  i,  but 
in  the  Low-german  the  eldest  Norn  still  survives 
long  after   the  introduction   of  Christianity,  in  a 
sense  little  removed  at  times  from  that  of  Necessity 
itself.     That  this  should  still  have  been  coupled 
with  a  lively  feeling  of  personality  only  proves  how 
deeply  rooted  the  old  Heathen  creed  had  been.     In 

'  Grimm,  Mythol.  p.  377,  does  not  seem  to  lay  much  stress  upon  the 
two  instances  which  he  gives,  one  of  which  is  extremely  doubtful,  and 
the  other  of  no  certain  authority. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    WIERD.  393 

the  following  instances  from  the  Oldsaxon  Heljand^, 
Wurth  might  almost  in  every  case  be  replaced  by 
dod,  mors :  "  Thiu  Wurth  is  at  handun,  dod  is  at 
hendi ; " — the  wierd^,  or  death,  is  at  hand,  i.  e.  so 
near  that  she  might  lay  hold  of  the  doomed.  "  Thiu 
Wurth nahida  thuo," — iheweird  drewnigh.  ^'Wurth 
ina  benam,"  Wierd,  i.  e.  the  goddess  of  death,  ra- 
vished him  away ;  as  in  Anglosaxon  we  have  Swylt 
benam,  Dea^  benam,  and  similar. expressions. 

The  Anglosaxon  equivalent  is  Wyrd,  an  expres- 
sion of  the  very  commonest  and  most  frequent  oc- 
currence. It  should  however  be  borne  in  mind  that 
there  are  two  separate  uses  of  this  word,  one  a  more 
abstract  one,  in  which  it  is  capable  of  being  used 
in  the  plural,  and  which  may  generally  be  rendered 
eventus^,  another  more  personal,  similar  to  the  Old- 
saxon Wurth,  and  in  which  it  never  occurs  but  in 
the  singular^.  In  the  following  most  remarkable 
passage  the  heathen  and   Christian   thoughts  are 

-  H^ljand.  Poema  Saxonicum  Saeouli  Noni.  Ed.  A.  Schmeller.  Mu- 
nich, pp.  146,  2  ;  92,  2  ;  163,  16 ;  66,  18 ;  111,  4. 

^  We  are  fortunate  in  being  able  to  use  not  a  translation  of  Wurth, 
hut  the  word  itself ;  I  am  not  aware  of  its  continuing  to  exist  in  any- 
other  German  dialect. 
'  Ne  wses  wyrd  Sagen 

•Sset  he  ma  moste 
manna  cynnes 

Hcgean  ofer  Sa  niht.  (Beow.  1.  1462.) 
wyrd  ne  cu«on.  (Ibid.  1.  2467.) 
■"  One  exception  to  be  hereafter  noticed  seems  more  apparent  than 
real.  If  howeyer  it  be  taken  in  its  fullest  and  ordinary  grammatical 
sense,  it  will  show  that  all  three  or  more  sisters  were  in  contemplation, 
and  that  the  name  of  the  eldest  had  become  a  general  expression  for 
themaU, 


400  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i_ 

strangely  mingled,  Wierd  being  placed  in  actual  ap- 
position with  God, 

8wa  lie  hyra  ma  wolde 
nefne  him  witig  God, 
Wyrd  forstode, 
.  -J  Sses  mannes  modi. 

"  As  he  would  more  of  them  had  not  wise  God, 
Wierd  forstood  him,  and  the  man's  courage."  How 
very  heathen  the  whole  would  be,  were  we  only 
to  conceive  the  word  God  an  interpolation,  which 
is  highly  probable ;  nefne  him  witig — Wyrd  for- 
stode ^ !  The  following  examples  will  show  the  use 
of  Wyrd : — "  hine  Wyrd  fornam," — him  Wierd  ra- 
vished away  3;  just  as  in  other  passages  we  have  guS 
fornam^,  Wig  ealle  fornam^,  swylt  fornam^,  dea^ 
fornam'^.  "Wyrd  ungemete  neah®," —  Wierd  was  im- 
measurably near  him ;  as  in  the  Oldsaxon  passages 
above  cited,  and  as  Dea^  ungemete  neah  ^.  "  Ac  unc 
sceal  weorSan  set  wealle,  swa  unc  Wyrd  geteo^, 
metod  manna  gehwBes^*'," — it  shall  befal  us  as  Wierd 
decideth,  the  lord  of  every  man.  "  Swa  him  Wyrd 
ne  gescraf  ^^," —  Wierd  did  not  appoint.  "  Ealle  Wyrd 

1  Beow.  1.  2104.  =  Ibid.  1.  2411. 

-  Ibid.  1.  2240.  *  Ibid.  1.  2154. 

=  Ibid.  1.  2872.  "  Ibid.  1.  4234, 4468. 

'  Ibid.  1.  4836.  »  Ibid.  1.  5453. 

"  Ibid.  1.  5048. 

'"  This  is  a  most  remarkable  passage,  for  Wyrd  is  distinctly  called 
Metod,  a  word  generally  appropriated  to  God ;  but  I  am  disposed  to 
think  that  Metten,  another  word  for  Fate,  was  uppermost  in  the  poet's 
mind, — perhaps  found  in  some  heathen  copy  of  the  poem.  "  Da  graman 
mettena,"  saevae  parcae.     Boet.  p.  161.  (Rawl.) 

"  Beow.  1.  5145. 


CH.  xii.J  HEATHENDOM.    WYRD.  401 

forsweopi," — Wierd  has  swept  away.  "U's  seo 
wyrd  scy'Se'S,  heard  and  hetegrim^," — us  doth  Wierd 
pursue,  hard  and  grim  in  hate. 

These  examples  will  suffice  to  show  how  tho- 
roughly personal  the  conception  of  Wierd  remained ; 
and  in  this  respect  there  is  no  difference  whatever 
between  the  practice  in  Beowulf  and  in  the  more 
professedly  Christian  poems  of  the  Exeter  and 
Vercelli  codices,  or  Csedmon.  But  one  peculiarity 
remains  to  be  noticed,  which  connects  our  Wierd 
in  the  most  striking  manner  with  the  heathen  god- 
desses generally,  and  the  Scandinavian  Nornir  par- 
ticularly. We  have  seen  that  Wierd  opposes,  that 
she  stands  close  to  the  doomed  warrior,  that  she 
ravishes  him  away,  that  she  sweeps  away  the  power 
of  men,  that  she  decides  or  appoints  the  event, 
that  she  is  hard  and  cruel  and  pursues  her  victims. 
But  she  also  weaves,  weaves  the  web  of  destiny,  as 
we  can  say  even  to  this  day  without  violence.  It 
is  necessary  to  give  examples  of  this  expression : 
"Me  ^8Bt  wyrd  gewsef^," — Wierd  wove  that  for 
me ;  similar  to  which  is,  "Ac  him  dryhten  forgeaf 
wigspeda  gewiofu*," — but  the  Lord  gave  him 
the  weft  of  victory;  where  undoubtedly  an  ear- 
lier weaving  Wyrd  was  thought  of.  "  Donne  seo 
Jrag  cyme^,  wefen  wyrd-stafum^," — when  the  time 
Cometh,  woven  with  wierd-siscwes,  or  letters,  pro- 
bably runes.  There  is  a  remarkable  passage  in  the 
same  collection^,  "  Wyrmas  mec  ne  awsefon,  Wyrda 

'  Beow.  1.  5624.  2  Cod.  Vercel.  Anal.  1.  3121. 

'  Cod.  Exon.  p.  .365.  *  Beow.  1.  1386. 

=  Cod.  Exon.  p.  183.  «  Ibid.  p.  417. 
VOL.  I.  2d 


402  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

crgeftum,  Sa  «e  geolo  godwebb  geatwum  freetwa®," 
— Worms  wove  me  not,  with  the  skill  of  Wierds, 
those  namely  which  the  yellow  silk  for  garments 
beautifully  form.  Here  weaving  is  especially  put 
forward  as  that  in  which  Wierd  excels,  her  own 
peculiar  craft  and  business  ^. 

Spinning  and  weaving  are  the  constant  occupa- 
tion of  Teutonic  goddesses  and  heroines :  Holda 
and  Bertha  spin  2,  and  so  do  all  the  representatives 
of  these  goddesses  in  popular  tradition  even  down 
to  the  fairies.  But  the  Valkyriur  or  Shieldmays 
also  weave,  and  in  this  function,  as  well  as  their 
immediate  action  in  the  battle-field,  as  choosers  of 
the  slain  ^,  they  have  some  points  of  contact  with 
theNornsandWyrd^.  Gray  has  transferred  to  our 
language  from  the  Nials  Saga  a  fine  poem^  which 
throws  some  light  upon  the  weaving  of  the  Valky- 
riur, the  wlgspeda  gewiofu.  The  Anglosaxon  belief 
in  the  Shieldmaidens  comes  to  us  indeed  in  a  dark- 
ened form,  yet  we  can  hardly  doubt  that  it  survived. 
The  word  Wselcyrge  occurs  in  glossaries  to  explain 

'  I  am  almost  inclined  to  think  tlie  words  searoriina  gespon,  tJie  web 
of  various  runes,  merely  a  periphrasis  for  wyrd,  taken  in  the  abstract 
sense  of  event.     Cod.  Ex.  p.  347. 

^  "As  tems  ou  Berte  filait,"  i.  e.  in  a  period  anterior  to  the  memory 
of  man :  in  the  days  of  heathendom,  of  the  goddess  Bertha,  not  the 
queen. 

'  Waelcyrige  is  derived  from  Wsel  the  slain  and  cedsan  to  choose, 

*  I  do  not  know  whether  the  expression  Hine  Wyrd  geoiSaB,  can  be 
found  in  Saxon  poetry ;  but  ceosan  is  a  very  common  word  in  phrases 
denoting  death,  though  by  Christian  poets  transferred  to  the  doomed 
hero,  from  the  god  or  goddess  :  sex  %n  forScure,  wintrum  wsel  reste. 
Oaedm.  p.  99.  "  Priusquam  annis  [i.  e.  vita]  praetulerit  mortiferam 
quietem." 

°  The  Fatal  sisters.     See  vol.  i.  p.  70,  Mitford's  edition. 


cii.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    SHIBLDMAYS.  403 

Bellona,  the  goddess  of  war,  and  one  gloss  calls 
eyes  Wselcyrigean,  gorgonei,  terrible  as  those  of 
Gorgo ;  the  flashing  of  the  eyes  was  very  probably 
one  mark  of  a  Wselcyrge  in  the  old  belief^,  as  she 
floated  or  rode  above  the  closing  ranks  of  battle. 
In  the  superstitions  of  a  later  period  however  we 
find  a  clear  allusion  to  these  supernatural  maidens. 
A  spell  preserved  in  a  Harleian  manuscript^  con- 
tains the  following  passages  : 

Hliide  waeron  hi  la  hliide,  8a  hy 
ofer  Sone  hlsew  ridon  ; 
WEeron  anmode,  ^Ahj 
0  fer  land  ridon. 

"  Loud,  lo !    loud  were  they,    as    they  rode   over 

'  When  Dorr  visits  Drymr  under  the  disguise  of  Freya,  the  giant 
is  suspicious  of  the  flashing  eyes  which  he  sees  under  the  veil.  Loki 
explains  them  by  the  sleeplessness  arising  from  Freya's  desire  for  the 
giant's  embraces. 

Laut  und  linu 

lysti  at  kyssa ; 

en  hann  litau  stokk 

endlangan  sal : 

"  Hwi  eru  ondiitt 

augu  Freyju  ? 

Hkki  m^r  or  augum 

eldr  of  brenna !  " 

Sat  in  alsnotra 
ambott  fyrir, 
er  otS  um  fann 
viS  jotuns  mali: 
"  Svaf  vaetr  Freyja 
atta  ndttum, 
sva  var  hon  otSfiis 
i  jotunheima." 

Hamarsheimt.  xxvii.  xxviii 
"  MS.  Harl.  585,  fol.  186. 

2d2 


404  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLA.ND.  [book  i. 

the  hill:  bold  were  they,  as  they  rode  over  the 
land." 

Stod  under  linde 
under  leohtum  soylde 
Sser  6a  mihtigan  wif 
hyra  msegen  ber^ddon, 
and  hy  gyllende 
garas  aendon. 

"  I  stood  beneath  my  linden  shield,  beneath  my 
light  shield,  where  the  mighty  women  exercised 
their  power,  and  sent  the  yelling  javelins!  "  An- 
other spell  from  a  MS.  in  Corpus  Christi  College, 
Cambridge,  appears  to  name  them  more  distinctly : 

Sitte  ge,  sigewif, 
sigaS  to  eorSan, 
nsefre  ge  wilde 
to  wuda  fleogan ; 
beo  ge  swd  gemindige 
mines  godes, 
swa  bis  manna  gehwilc 
metes  and  eSeles. 

"  Sit,  ye  victorious  women  (or  women  of  victory) 
descend  to  earth,  never  fly  ye  wildly  to  the  wood : 
be  ye  as  mindful  of  good  to  me,  as  every  man  is  of 
food  and  landed  possession."  Grimm  has  remarked 
with  great  justice^  that  the  sigewif  here  recalls  the 
names  of  Weelcyrian,  Sigrdrifa,  Sigrun  and  Sigr- 
liim.  I  certainly  see  in  Sigewif,  women  who  give 
victory ;  and  the  allusion  to  the  wild  flight  and  the 
wood  are  both  essentially  characteristic  of  the  Wsel- 

'  D.  Myth.  p.  402.     He  cites  this  spell,  but  proposes  on  grammati- 
cal grounds  to  read  wille  for  loilde.  If  any  change  is  necessary  I  should 


CH.  xn.]         HEATHENDOM.    CREATION,  ETC.  405 

cyrian,  whom  Saxo  Grammaticus  calls  feminae  and 
nymphae  sylvestres.  For  many  examples  of  this 
peculiar  character,  it  is  sufficient  to  refer  to  the 
Deutsche  Mythologie^. 

CREATION  AND  DESTRUCTION.— The  cos- 
mogony of  the  Pentateuch  was  necessarily  adopted 
by  the  Saxon  converts;  yet  not  so  entirely  as  to 
exclude  all  the  traditions  of  heathendom.  In  the 
mythology  of  the  Northern  nations,  the  creation 
of  the  world  occupied  an  important  place  :  its  de- 
tails are  recorded  iu  some  of  the  most  striking  lays 
of  the  earlier  Edda;  and  several  of  them  appear 
unconsciously  to  have  .acted  upon  the  minds  of  our 
Christian  poets.  The  genius  of  the  Anglosaxons 
does  not  indeed  seem  to  have  led  them  to  the 
adoption  of  those  energetic  and  truly  imaginative 
forms  of  thought  which  the  Scandinavians  proba- 
bly derived  from  the  sterner  natural  features  that 
surrounded  them :  the  rude  rocks  and  lakes  of 
Norway  and  Sweden,  the  volcanoes,  hot  springs, 
ice  plains  and  snow-covered  mountains  of  Iceland, 
readily  moulded  the  Northmen  to  a  different  train 
of  thought  from  that  which  satisfied  the  dwellers 
in  the  marshlands  of  the  Elbe  and  the  fat  plains  of 
Britain.  But  as  in  the  main  it  cannot  be  doubted 
that  the  heathendom  of  both  races  was  the  same, 
so  even  in  many  modes  of  expression  we  meet  with 
a  resemblance  which  can  hardly  be  accidental. 
Like  almost  every  other  people,  the  Northmen  con- 

'  Dent.  Myth.  p.  401,  seq.} 


406  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

sidered  a  gigantic  chaos  to  have  preceded  the  world 
of  order.  While  the  giant  Ymer  lived,  the  earth 
was  "  without  form  and  void."  Listen  to  the  words 
of  the  Vaulu  Spa,  or  Prophetess's  Song  : 

A'r  var  alda  .  "When  Tmer  dwelt  here, 

)»ar  er  Y'mir  byg8i :  'twas  the  dawn  of  time  : 

vara  sandr  ne  sasr  cool  streams  were  not, 

ne  svalar  unnir  :  neither  sands,  nor  seas : 

jor8  fannsk  seva  earth  was  not 

ne  upphiminn,  nor  o'er  it  heaven, 

gap  var  ginnunga,  yawned  the  gap, 

en  gras  hvergi ' .  and  grass  was  nowhere. 

The  sons  of  Bur  however,  OJiinn,  Vile  and  Ve, 
created  the  vast  Midgard,  or  realm  of  earth : 

Sol  skein  sunnan  The  sun  shone  southward 

a  salar  steina  on  the  stone  halls, 

jjd  var  grund  groin  then  was  earth  grown 

groenum  lauki^.  with  green  produce. 

The  constellations  however  as  yet  had   no    ap- 
pointed course : 

Sol  fat  ne  vissi  But  the  sun  knew  not 

hvar  hon  sali  sitti,  where  her  seat  should  be, 

mani  ];at  ne  vissi  and  the  moon  knew  not 

hvat  hann  megins  atti,  what  his  might  should  be, 

stjdrnur  fat  ne  vissu  planets  knew  not 

hvar  J78er  staSi  fittu^.  where  their  place  should  be. 

So  the  holy  Gods  went  to  council,  and  divided 
the  seasons,  giving  names  to  night  and  noon  and 
morning,  to  undern   and  evening,  that  the    years 


might  be  reckoned 


4 


'  Vaulu  Spa,  St.  3.  =  i^^^^  g^._  4_ 

^  Ibid.  St.  5.  -  Ibid.  St.  6. 


CH.  XII.]        HEATHENDOM.    CREATION,  ETC. 


407 


The  construction  of  the  world  out  of  the  frag- 
ments of  Ymer's  body,  the  doctrine  of  the  ash 
Yggdrasil,  and  of  wondrous  wells  beneath  its  roots, 
could  of  course  find  no  echo  here,  after  the  conver- 
sion. But  it  is  very  remarkable  how  nearly  the 
description  of  creation  given  in  Csedmon  sometimes 
coincides  with  the  old  remains  of  heathendom : 


Ne  waes  her  Sagiet 
nymSe  heolaterseeado 
•wiht  geworden, 
ac  8es  wida  grund 
stod  deop  and  dim, 
driifcne  fremde, 
idel  and  unnyt ; 
on  Sone  eagnm  wlat 
stiSfrihS  oining, 
and  Sa  stowe  beheold 
drednia  lease. 
Geseah.  deorc  gesweorc 
semian  sinnihte, 
sweart  under  roderum, 
wonn  and  weste .... 
folde  wses  Sagyt 
grses  ungrene ; 
g&seog  feahte 
Bwearfc  synnihte 
wide  and  side 
wonne  wsegas^ 


There  had  not  here  as  yet 

save  cavern  shade 

aught  existed, 

but  this  wide  abyss 

stood  deep  and  dim, 

strange  to  its  lord, 

idle  and  useless ; 

on  which  looked  with  his  eyes 

the  king  firm  of  mood 

and  beheld  the  place 

devoid  of  joys. 

He  saw  the  dark  cloud 

lour  in  endless  night, 

swart  under  heaven, 

dusky  and  desert. .  . . 

the  earth  was  yet 

not  green  with  grass ; 

but  ocean  covered 

dark  in  endless  night 

far  and  wide 

the  dusky  ways. 


Then  follows  the  creation  of  light,  the  separation 
of  evening  and  morning,  and  the  production  of 
organic  life,  as  in  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis.  The 
Wida  grund,  or  vast  abyss,  is  the  Ginnunga  gap, 
yawning  gulf,  of  the  Edda,  and  a  very  remarkable 


1  Csedm.  p.  7, 1.  8  seq. 


408  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  r. 

parallel  lies  in  the  assertion  that  there  was  no  grass 
anywhere  to  make  green  the  earth. 

The  world  was  created  out  of  the  portions  of 
Ymer's  hody ;  but  it  seems  to  be  a  remnant  of  an- 
cient heathendom  when  we  find  in  later  times  a 
tradition  that  Man  was  created  out  of  the  great 
natural  portions  of  the  world  itself.  An  ancient 
Frisic  manuscript  quoted  by  Grimm  in  Haupt's 
Altdeutsche  Blatter^  says,  "  God  scop  thene  eresta 
meneska,  thet  was  Adam,  fon  achta  wendem ;  thet 
benete  fon  tha  stene,  thet  flask  fon  there  erthe,  thet 
blod  fon  tha  wetere,  tha  herta  fon  tha  winde,  thene 
thochta  fon  tha  wolken,  thene  suet  fon  tha  dawe, 
tha  lokkar  fon  tha  gerse,  tha  agene  fon  there  sunna, 
and  tha  blerem  on  thene  helga  6m."  That  is, — God 
created  him  of  eight  things  :  his  bones  from  stone, 
his  flesh  from  earth,  his  blood  from  water,  his  heart 
from  wind,  his  thought  from  cloud,  his  sweat  from 
dew,  his  hair  from  the  grass,  his  eyes  from  the 
sun,  and  then  breathed  into  him  the  breath  of  life. 
In  the  prose  Salomon  and  Saturn  we  are  also  told 
that  Adam  was  created  of  eight  pounds  by  weight : 
a  pound  of  earth  from  whence  his  flesh ;  a  pound 
of  fire,  whence  his  red  and  hot  blood ;  a  pound  of 
wind,  whence  his  breathing;  a  pound  of  cloud, 
whence  his  unsteadiness  of  mood ;  a  pound  of  grace, 
whence  his  stature  and  growth ;  a  pound  of  blos- 
soms, whence  the  variety  of  his  eyes ;  a  pound  of 
dew,  whence  his  sweat ;  and  a  pound  of  salt,  whence 
his  salt  tears  2, 

'  Vol.  i.  Part  i.  p.  1. 

'  See  the  Author's  edition,  p.  181,  and  the  notes  at  p.  194. 


CF.xn.]         HEATHENDOM.     OBEATION,  ETC. 


409 


But  a  much  more  striking  proof  of  heathendom 
lies  in  the  Anglosaxon  belief  that  after  the  destruc- 
tion of  this  creation  a  more  beautiful  one  would 
arise  ;  not  only  a  metaphysical  kingdom  of  heaven, 
but  a  concrete  world  like  our  own,  on  a  more  im- 
posing and  glorious  scale.  It  was  the  belief  of  the 
Northmen  that  in  the  closing  evening  of  the  ages, 
the  Eagna-rauk,  or  twilight  of  the  Gods,  the  old 
Titanic  powers  would  burst  their  fetters  ;  Loki,  the 
Northern  Satan,  would  be  released  from  his  bond- 
age ;  Midgard's  orm,  the  serpent  that  surrounds 
the  world,  would  rise  in  his  giant  fury ;  the  wolf 
Fenrir  woiild  snap  his  chain  and  move  against  the 
gods;  the  ship  Naglfar,  made  of  the  nails  of  the 
dead,  and  steered  by  Loki,  would  convey  the  sons 
of  Muspelheim  to  Vigrid,  the  plain  on  which  this 
heathen  Armageddon  was  to  be  fought :  at  their 
head  the  terrible  Surtr,  the  black,  the  destroyer  of 
the  gods,  beneath  whose  sword  of  fire  the  whole 
world  should  perish. 

KjoU  ferr  austan,  Eastward  the  sHp 

koma  munu  Muspells  shall  shape  its  journey, 

um  laug  l;^Sir,  Muspell's  sons 

en  Loki  st^rir'.  the  sea  shall  travel, 

o'er  the  lakes  shall 

Loki  steer  her. 

0))inn,  Thorr,  and  the  other  gods  shall  perish, 
but  not  unrevenged :  the  wolf  and  the  serpent  will 
fall,  one  by  the  hands  of  Vi'Sarr,  0})inn's  son,  the 
other  under  the  terrible  battle-maul  of  Thorr.    The 

'  Vanlu  Spa,  st.  50. 


410  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

sun  and  moon  and  earth  will  be  destroyed,  and  the 
ash  Yggrdasil  wither  under  the  flames  of  Surtr. 

Sol  tekr  sortna.  Black  wanes  the  sun, 

sigr  fold  1  mar,  in  waves  the  earth  shall  sink, 

hverfa  af  himni  from  heaven  shall  fall 

h«it5ar  stjornur  ;  the  friendly  stars  ; 

geisar  eimr  round  the  tree 

vis  aldrnara,  red  fire  shall  rustle, 

leikr  har  hiti  high  heat  play 

vis  himin  sjalfan  \  against  the  heaven. 

But  the  Gods  will  be  found  again  in  I'Savelli ; 
the  earth  will  arise  again  from  the  ocean ;  the  sun 
that  perished  will  have  left  a  yet  more  beauteous 
daughter  to  perform  her  task  ;  the  deities  will  re- 
member their  ancient  power,  and  the  secrets  of  the 
great  god ;  the  golden  tablets  will  be  found  in  the 
grass ;  Baldr,  the  slain  god,  will  arise  from  the 
tomb  ;  Havdr,  that  unconsciously  slew  him,  will 
return  with  him  from  the  realms  of  Hel,  the  god- 
dess of  the  dead.  Vi'Sarr  and  Vale,  sons,  or  rather 
new  births  of  OJiinn;  Mode  and  Magne,  sons  of 
Thorr,  will  survive  the  universal  destruction;  All- 
father's  glorious  kingdom  will  be  renewed,  and  the 
power  of  death  and  evil  vanish  for  ever. 

Ser  hon  uppkoma  Then  sees  she  rise 

oSru  sinni,  a  second  time 

jorS  or  cegi  the  world  from  ocean 

iSjagrcena^-  wondrous  green. 

Ema  dottur  One  hright  child  shall 

berr  A'lfroSull  bear  A'lfroSull, 

aSr  hana  Fenrir  fari ;  ere  her  form  doth 

1  Vaulu  Spa,  St.  56.  =  Ibid.  st.  57. 


CH.XU.]        HEATHENDOM.    CREATION,  ETC. 


411 


sii  skal  riSa, 

pd  er  regin  deyja, 

motSur  brautir  mser ' 


Finnask  jEsir 
a  ISavelli, 
ok  urn  moldpinur 
matkan  duema, 
ok  minnask  far 
i  megindoma, 
ok  a  fimbultys 
fornar  runar. 

Jiar  munu  eptir 
undrsamligar 
gulluar  tbflur 
1  grasi  finnask, 
faers  i  ardaga 
attar  hofSu 
folkvaldr  goSa 
ok  Pjblnis  kind. 

Munu  osanir 

akrar  vaxa, 

bols  mun  alls  batna, 

Baldr  mun  koma ; 

bua  J;eir  HoSr  ok  Baldr 

Hropts  sigtoptir 

vel  valtivar'^. 

Sal  ser  hon  standa 
solu  fegra, 
guUi  JiakSan 
a  Gimli : 


Penrir  rain  ; 

thus  shall  go, 

when  gods  have  perished, 

the  maiden  on 

her  mother's  journey. 

^sir  meet 
in  Kavelli, 
doom  with  power 
the  great  disasters, 
there  remember 
mighty  judgements, 
and  FimbultJ'rs 
former  secrets. 

After,  shall  be 
aU  together 
found  in  the  grass 
the  golden  tablets, 
which  in  time  past 
possessed  among  them 
gods  that  ruled 
the  race  of  Odin. 

Then  unsown 
the  swath  shall  flourish 
all  bale  mend,  and 
back  come  Baldr  : 
with  him  HoSr  dwell 
in  Hropter's  palace, 
shrines  of  gods 
the  great  and  holy. 

There  sees  she  stand 
than  sunlight  fairer, 
aimU's  hall 
with  gold  aU  covered  : 


'■  Wafl>rudnis  Mai,  st.  47.     A'lfrb«ul  is  a  name  of  the  Sun,  and  is 
said  to  denote  divine  splendour.     Edd.  Lex.  Myth,  in  voc. 
'  Vaulu  Spa,  st.  57,  58,  59,  60. 


412  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  r. 

far  skolu  dyggvar  there  the  just  shall 

drottir  hyggja,  joy  for  ever, 

ok  um  aldrdaga  and  in  pleasure 

■  ynSis  njota'.  pass  the  ages. 

The  conviction  that  the  virtuous  vpould  rejoice 
with  God  in  a  world  of  happiness  was  of  course  not 
derived  by  our  forefathers  merely  from  their  hea- 
thendom ;  but  to  this  we  may  unhesitatingly  refer 
their  belief,  that  after  doomsday  the  sun  and  moon 
would  be  restored  with  greater  splendour.  The 
Saxon  Menology^  says  very  distinctly  : 

"At  doomsday,  when  our  Lord  shall  renew  all 
creatures,  and  all  the  race  of  men  shall  rise  again, 
and  never  more  commit  sin,  then  will  the  sun  shine 
seven  times  brighter  than  she  now  doth,  and  she 
will  never  set ;  and  the  moon  will  shine  as  the  sun 
now  doth,  and  never  will  wane  or  wax,  but  stand 
for  ever  on  his  course^."  That  this  belief  was  not 
unknown  in  Germany  may  be  argued  from  an  ex- 
pression of  Freidank, 

Got  himel  und  erde  lat  zergan, 
unt  wil  dernaoh  ein  schoenerz  han*. 

Dim  and  fragmentary  as  these  rays  of  light  may  be 
which  straggle  to  us  through  the  veils  of  bygone 
ages,  it  is  impossible  not  to  recognize  in  them  traces 
of  that  primaeval  faith  which  teaches  the  respon- 
sibility of  man,  the  rule  of  just  and  holy  beings 

1  Vaulu  Spa,  St.  62.  '  MS.  Corp.  Christi,  No.  179. 

'  See  Salomon  and  Saturn,  p.  177.  It  may  be  observed  here  that 
the  feminine  gender  of  the  sun,  and  masculine  of  the  moon,  have  their 
origin  in  our  heathen  mythology. 

*  Freydanck,  Beschied.  p.  8. 


CH.xn.]      HEATHENDOM.    SOYLDWA.    SOEA'F.  413 

superior  to  himself,  and  a  future  existence  of  joy 
and  soiTOW,  the  ultimate  consequence  of  human 
actions.  With  what  amount  of  distinctness  this 
great  truth  may  have  been  placed  before  their  eyes, 
we  cannot  tell,  but  it  is  enough  that  we  see  it  ad- 
mitted in  one  of  the  most  thoroughly  heathen  poems 
of  the  Edda,  and  confirmed  by  an  Anglosaxon  tradi- 
tion totally  independent  of  Christianity.  Weak  as 
it  is  while  unsupported  by  the  doctrine  of  a  graci- 
ous Redeemer,  it  is  not  wholly  inoperative  upon  the 
moral  being  of  men  ;  and  its  reception  among  the 
nations  of  the  North  must  have  tended  to  prepare 
them  for  the  doctrine  which  in  the  fulness  of  time 
was  to  supersede  their  vague  and  powerless  desires 
by  the  revelation  of  the  crucified  Saviour. 

HEROES. — It  now  remains  that  we  should  be- 
stow a  few  words  upon  the  heroic  names  which 
figure  in  the  Epopoea  of  the  North,  and  which  pro- 
bably in  many  cases  belong  to  the  legends  and  the 
worship  of  gods  now  forgotten,  or  which  at  least 
represent  those  gods  in  their  heroic  form  and  cha- 
racter ;  even  as  the  Iliad  in  Achilles  may  celebrate 
only  one  form  of  the  Dorian  Apollo,  and  the  le- 
gends of  Cadmus  and  Theseus  may  be  echoes  from 
an  earlier  cult  of  Jupiter  and  Neptune. 

The  hero  Scyld  or  Sceldwa^  has  been  mentioned 
as  the  godlike  progenitor  of  the  Scyldingas,  the 
royal  race  of  Denmark  ;  but  he  also  appears  among 
the  mythical  ancestors  of  Woden,  in  the  genealogy 

From  wHoh  form  we  must  conclude  for  the  reading  Soyldu  (as 
Wudu,  Durn). 


414  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

of  Wessex.  It  is  a  singular  fact  that  the  Anglo- 
saxons  alone  possess  the  fine  mythus  of  this  hero ; 
the  opening  division  or  canto  of  Beowulf  relates  of 
him  that  he  was  exposed  as  a  child  in  a  ship  upon 
the  ocean ;  a  costly  treasure  accompanied  the  sleep- 
ing infant  as  he  floated  to  the  shores  of  the  Gar- 
danes,  whose  king  he  became ;  after  reigning  glo- 
riously and  founding  a  race  of  kings,  he  died,  and 
was  again  sent  forth  in  his  ship,  surrounded  with 
treasures,  to  go  into  the  unknown  world,  from 
which  he  came ;  he  came  to  found  a  royal  race^, 
and  having  done  so,  he  departs  and  nothing  more 
is  known  of  him.  That  this  mythus  was  deeply 
felt  in  England  appears  from  its  being  referred 
to  even  by  the  later  chroniclers:  ^^elweard^  and 
William  of  Malmesbury  ^  mention  it  at  length,  and  a 

'        'Sone  God  sende  -whom  God  sent 

folce  to  frofre,  to  the  people  for  their  comfort, 

fyrenjiearfe  ongeat  the  evil  need  he  understood 

Ba  hie  &i  drugon  which  they  hefore  had  sufered 

aldorlease.  while  without  a  long. 

Beow.  1.  26. 
°  ^'Selw.  lih.  iii.  He  attributes  the  legend  to  Sceaf,  Scyld's  father; 
his  words  are  :  "  Ipse  Scef  cum  uno  dromone  advectus  est  in  Lusula 
oceani  quae  dicitur  Scani,  armis  circumdatus,  eratque  valde  recens 
puer,  et  ah  incolis  illius  terrae  ignotus ;  attamen  ah  eis  suscipitur,  et  ut 
familiarem  diligenti  animo  eum  custodierunt,  ct  post  in  regem  eligunt : 
de  cuius  prosapia  ordinem  trahit  Athulf  rex." 

^  William  of  Mahuesbury  (G.  R.  ii.  116)  adds  another  peculiarity  to  the 
legend,  which  however  he  gives  to  Sceaf,  Scyld's  father ;  he  says,  "  Iste, 
ut  ferunt,  in  quandam  insulam  Germaniae  Scandzam,  de  qua  Jordanes 
historiographus  Gothorum  loquitur,  appulsus,  navi  sine  remige,  pueru- 
lus,  posito  ad  caput  frumenti  manipulo,  dormiens,  ideoque  Sceaf  nun- 
cupatus,  ah  hominibus  regionis  illius  pro  miraculo  exceptus,  et  sedulo 
nutritus,  adulta  aetate  regnavit  in  oppido  quod  tunc  Slasvic,  nunc 
vero  Haithebi  appellatur.  Est  autem  regio  ilia  Anglia  Vetus  dicta, 
unde  Angli  venerunt  in  Britanniam,  inter  Saxones  et  Gothos  consti- 


CH.xn.l  HEATHENDOM.    BEOWA.  415 

desire  to  engraft  a  national  upon  a  biblical  tradition 
not  only  causes  Sceaf  to  be  called  by  some  authors  the 
son  of  Shem,  but  leads  to  the  assertion  of  the  Saxon 
chronicle  that  Sceaf  was  the  son  of  Noah,  born  in 
the  ark^,  in  obvious  allusion  to  the  miraculous  ex- 
posure on  the  waters.  The  mention  of  Scani  by 
iESelweard  may  be  taken  in  connection  with  a 
Norse  tradition  that  Skjold  was  Skanunga  go]?,  a 
god  of  the  Scanings.  An  Anglosaxon  riddle  in  the 
Codex  Exoniensis  ^,  and  of  which  the  answer  seems 
to  me  to  be  only  a  shield,  concludes  with  the  very 
remarkable  words, 

nama  min  is  maere,  miglity  is  my  name, 

hieleSum  gifre,  rapacious  among  men, 

and  hffig  sylf.  and  itself  holy. 

The  second  line  seems  to  exclude  the  supposition  of 
there  being  any  reference  to  Almighty  God,  though 
Scyld,  like  Helm,  is  one  of  his  names,  examples 
of  which  are  numerous  in  all  Anglosaxon  poetry. 
There  are  one  or  two  places  in  England  which  bear 
the  name  of  this  god  or  hero :  these  are  Scyldes 
treowS,  Scyldmere*,  and  Scyldes  heafda^ ;  but  ex- 
cept in  the  genealogy  of  Wessex  and  the  tradition 
recorded  by  ^'Selweard  and  William  of  Malmesbury, 
there  is  no  record  of  Sceaf. 
As  in  the  poem  of  Beowulf,  Scyld  is  said  to  have 

tuta."    Wendover  (Plor.  Hist.)  copies  Malmesbm-y,  with  the  explana/. 

tiou  of  the  name  Sceafa,  from  Sceaf  a  sheaf  of  corn;  others  derived  it 

from  sciifan,  trvAsre,  "quia  fortunae  commissus."  Die  Stammtafel  der 

Westsachsen,  p.  33. 
'  "Se  wses  gehoren  in  «&e  earce  Noes."    Ohron.  Sax.  855. 
'  Cod.  Exon.  p.  407".  a  q,,^  p-  j  ^Tq  430 

'  Ibid.  Nos.  356,  762.  »  Ibid  No  I')! 


416  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGIiAJSTD.  [book  i. 

a  son  called  Beowulf  from  whom  the  kings  of  Sles- 
wig  are  descended,  so  in  the  genealogy  of  Wessex, 
Scyld  is  followed  by  Beaw:  there  is  some  uncer- 
tainty in  the  form  of  the  name,  but  upon  compa- 
rison of  all  the  different  versions  given  by  various 
chroniclers,  we  may  conclude  that  it  was  Beowa  or 
Beow,  a  word  equivalent  to  -Beowulf.  The  original 
divinity  of  this  person  is  admitted  by  Grimm,  but 
he  suffers  himself  to  be  misled  by  some  over-skilful 
German  lexicographer  who  has  added  Beewolf  to 
the  list  of  English  names  for  the  woodpecker,  and 
would  render  Beowulf  as  a  sort  of  Latin  Picus. 
I  am  not  aware  that  any  bird  in  England  was  ever 
called  the  heewolf,  or  that  there  are  any  supersti- 
tions connected  with  the  woodpecker  in  England, 
as  there  are  in  Germany ;  the  cuckoo  and  the 
magpie  are  our  birds  of  augury.  When  Grimm 
then  declares  himself  disposed  not  to  give  up  the 
termination  -wulf  in  the  name,  he  has  only  the 
authority  of  the  poem  on  his  side,  in  defence  of  his 
theory  :  against  which  must  be  placed  every  other 
list  or  genealogy ;  and  it  seems  to  me  that  these 
are  strongly  confirmed  by  the  occurrence  of  a  place 
called,  not  Beowulfes  ham,  but  Beowan  ham^,  in 
immediate  connection  with  another  named  Grendles 
mere^:  Whatever  the  name,  this  hero  was  looked 
upon  as  the  eponymus  of  various  royal  races,  and 
this,  though  the  names  which  have  survived  are 
obviously  erroneous^,  is  distinctive  of  his  real  cha- 
racter. 

'  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  353.  '  Ibid. 

^  Stammtafel  der  Westsachsen,  p.  18  seq. 


CH.xii.]      HEATHENDOM,    HYGELA'C.     HN^F.  417 

There  are  various  other  heroes  mentioned  in  the 
poem  of  Beowulf  and  in  the  Traveller's  Song,  some 
remembrance  of  which  is  still  preserved  in  local 
names  in  various  parts  of  England.  A  few  words 
may  not  be  misplaced  respecting  them.  In  the 
first-named  poem,  the  hero's  lord  and  suzerain  is 
invariably  named  Hygelac ;  after  whose  death  Beo- 
wulf himself  becomes  king  of  the  Geatas.  As  Hy- 
gelac is  said  to  have  perished  in  fiight  against  the 
Franks,  and  as  history  records  the  fall  of  a  Danish 
king  Chochilachus  in  a  predatory  excursion  into 
the  Frankish  territory  about  the  beginning  of  the 
seventh  century^,  Outzen,  Leo  and  others  have 
identified  the  two  in  fact  as  well  as  name,  and 
drawn  conclusions  as  to  the  mythical  hero,  from 
the  historical  prince.  The  coincidence  is  not  con- 
clusive :  if  Hygelac's  name  were  already  mythical 
in  the  seventh  century,  it  may  easily  have  been  given 
to  any  leader  who  ventured  a  plundering  expedition 
into  the  Frankish  territory,  especially  as  the  war- 
like records  of  an  earlier  Hygelac  would  be  certain 
to  contain  some  account  of  Frankish  forays :  nor 
was  Hygelac,  in  Danish  Hugleikr^,  by  any  means 
an  uncommon  name.  On  the  other  hand,  if  we 
admit  the  historical  allusion,  we  must  assign  a  date 
to,  at  any  rate,  that  episode  of  the  poem  which  is 
hardly  consistent  with  its  general  character,     I  am 

Leo,  in  Ms  Beowulf,  p.  5,  cites  Gregor.  Turon.  iii.  S,  and  tie  Gest 
Reg.  Francorum,  cap,  19,  for  the  details  of  Chochilacli's  invasion  and 
death. 

The  name  HuhliSk,  given  in  Langeheke,  and  hy  Geijer,  from  the 
Ynglinga  Saga,  as  Hugleck.     Hist.  Swed.  p.  378,  tab,  ii. 
VOL.  I.  2  E 


418  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

therefore  inclined  to  think  that  in  this  instance,  as 
in  so  many  others,  an  accidental  resemblance  has 
been  too  much  relied  upon :  it  is  in  fact  quite  as 
likely  (or  even  more  likely)  that  the  historian  should 
have  been  indebted  to  the  legend,  than  that  the 
poet  should  have  derived  his  matter  from  history. 
It  does  seem  probable  that  Hygelac  enjoyed  a  my- 
thical character  among  the  Germans:  in  the  "Alt- 
deutsche  Blatter  "  of  Moriz  Haupt^,  we  find  the  fol- 
levsdng  statement,  taken  from  a  MS.  of  the  tenth 
century.  "  De  Getarum  rege  Huiglauco  mirae 
magnitudinis. — Et  sunt  mirae  magnitudinis,  ut  rex 
Huiglaucus,  qui  imperavit  Getis  et  a  Francis  oc- 
cisus  est,  quern  equus  a  duodecimo  anno  portare 
non  potuit,  cuius  ossa  in  Kheni  fluminis  insula,  ubi 
in  oceanum  prorumpit,  reservata  sunt  et  de  lougin- 
quo  venientibus  pro  miraculo  ostenduntur." 

But  Hygelac  is  not  knoM'n  in  Germany  only : 
even  in  England  we  have  traces  of  him  in  local 
names :  thus  Hygelaces  geat^,  which,  as  the  name 
was  never  borne  by  an  Anglosaxon, — so  far  at 
least  as  we  know, — speaks  strongly  for  his  mythi- 
cal character.  That  the  fortunes,  under  similar 
circumstances,  of  a  historical  prince,  of  the  same 
name  or  not  of  the  same  name,  should  have  become 
mixed  up  with  an  earlier  legend,  is  by  no  means 
unusual  or  surprising. 

Another  hero  of  the  Beowulf  cycle  is  Hnsef  the 
Hoeing,  whose  fate  is  described  in  a  fine  episode^, 
and  is  connected  with  the  poem  called  "  The  battle 

'  Book  V.  part  i.  p.  10.  '  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  566. 

=  Bedw.  1.  2130  seq. 


CH-Xii.]      HEATHENDOM.    WADA.     WELAND.  419 

of  Finnesburhi."  of  him  too  England  has  some- 
thing to  tell:  I  find  a  place  was  called  Hnsefes  scylf  2, 
andfurther  that  there  was  aHocesbyrgels^,  obviously 
not  a  Christian  burial-place,  a  Hoces  ham*,  and  a 
Hoeing  mfed^.  But  unless  resemblances  greatly 
deceive  us,  we  must  admit  that  this  hero  was  not 
entirely  unknown  to  the  Franks  also;  Charle- 
magne's wife  Hiltikart,  a  lady  of  most  noble 
blood  among  the  Swsefas  or  Sueves  ("  nobilissimi 
generis  Suavorum  puella ")  was  a  near  relation  of 
Kotofrit,  duke  of  the  Alamanni^ :  in  her  genealogy 
occur  the  names  Huocingus  and  Nebi  in  imme- 
diate succession,  and  it  seems  difficult  not  to  see  in 
these  Hoeing  and  Hnsef.  If,  as  has  been  suggested, 
the  Hocings  were  Chauci  or  Frisians,  their  con- 
nexion with  the  Sueves  must  be  of  an  antiquity 
almost  transcending  the  limits  of  history,  and 
date  from  those  periods  when  the  Frisians  were 
neighbours  of  the  Swsefas  upon  the  Elbe,  and  long 
before  these  occupied  the  highlands  of  Germany, 
long  in  fact  before  the  appearance  of  the  Franks  in 
Gaul,  under  Chlodio. 

Among  the  heroes  of  heathen  tradition  are  Wada, 
Weland  and  Eigil.  All  three,  so  celebrated  in  the 
mythus  and  epos  of  Scandinavia  and  Germany,  have 
left  traces  in  England.     Of  Wada  the  Traveller's 


'  Printed  in  the  first  volume  of  tlie  author's  edition  of  Beowulf, 
p.  238. 

'  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  595.  '  Ibid.  No.  1267. 

'  Ibid.  No.  1142.  '  Ibid.  No.  1091. 

'  Thegau.  vit.  HludoT.  Pertz,  Monum.  ii.  590, 591.  Eginbart,  §  18. 
Pertz,  Mon.  ii.  462,  463. 

2e2 


420  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

Song  declares  that  he  ruled  the  Helsings  i ;  and  even 
later  times  had  to  tell  of  Wade's  loat  2,  in  which 
the  exact  allusion  is  unknown  to  us :  the  Scandi- 
navian story  makes  him  wade  across  the  Groena- 
sund,  carrying  his  son  upon  his  shoulder ;  perhaps 
our  tradition  gave  a  different  version  of  this  peril- 
ous journey.  The  names  of  places  which  record  his 
name  are  not  numerous,  but  still  such  are  found, 
thus  Wadanbeorgas^,  Wadanhlsew*.  It  is  other- 
wise, however,  with  his  still  more  celebrated  son, 
Weland,  the  Wieland  of  German,  Volundr  of  Norse 
and  Galand  of  French  tradition.  Weland  is  the 
most  famous  of  smiths,  and  all  good  swords  are  his 
work.  In  Beowulf,  the  hero  when  about  to  engage 
in  a  perilous  adventure,  requests  that  if  he  falls  his 
coat-of-mail  may  be  sent  liome,  Welandes  geweorc, 
either  literally  the  work  of  Weland,  or  a  work  so  ad- 
mirable that  Weland  might  have  made  it.^  Alfred 
in  his  Boetius^  translates  j^Wefe  ossa  Fabricii  by 

^  Line  44.    See  also  Cod.  Exon.  pp.  320,  514.    Ettmiiller,  Scopes 

•WldEl'^. 

'  Chaucer  once  or  twice  refers  to  tliis  in  such  a  way  as  to  show  that 
the  expression  was  used  in  an  obscene  sense.     Old  women,  he  says, 
"  connen  so  nioche  craft  in  Wades  bote."     Again  of  Pandarus  : 
"  He  song,  he  plaied,  he  told  a  tale  of  Wade." 

Troil.  Cressid, 
In  this  there  seems  to  lie  some  allusion  to  what   anatomists  have 
termed  fossa  7iamciilaris,  though  what  immediate   connection  there 
could  be  with  the  mythical  Wada,  now  escapes  us.     It  is  suificiently 
remarkable  that  the  Greeks  made  a  similar  application  of  o-Kd(f>os. 
CO  TrayKaTaTTvyov  BrnxtTepov  airav  ytvos' 
ovK  €t6s  d(j)  rjfiSiv  clalv  ai  rpayadlai. 
ovdip  yap  icrp.€v  irKriv  Traaadav  Ka\  aKa<lir}, 

Aristoph.  Lysistr.  137. 
»  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  55,  ^  Ibid.  No.  18. 

"  Beow.  1.  901  »   Boet.  de  Cons.  ii. 


OH.  in.]  HEATHENDOM.    ^GEL.  421 

"  Sfes  wisan  goldsmi'Ses  ban  Welondes,"  where,  as 
Grimm  1  observes,  the  word  Fabricius  {faher)  may- 
have  led  him  to  think  of  the  most  celebrated  of 
smiths,  Weland.  The  nse  made  by  Sir  W.  Scott  of 
Weland's  name  must  be  familiar  to  all  readers  of 
Kenilworth :  from  what  has  been  said  it  will  ap- 
pear how  mistaken  in  many  respects  his  view  was. 
The  place  in  Berkshire  which  even  yet  in  popular 
tradition  preserves  the  name  of  Wat/land  smith,  is 
nevertheless  erroneously  called  ;  the  boundary  of  a 
Saxon  charter  names  it  much  more  accurately 
Welandes  smi'SSe,  i.  e.  Weland's  smithy,  his  work- 
shop2.  The  legend  of  Weland,  identical  in  many 
respects  with  that  of  the  Wilkina  Saga  and  other 
Northern  versions,  is  mentioned  in  the  Cod.  Exon. 
p.  377.  Here  we  find  notice  taken  of  his  mutila- 
tion by  NiSaudr,  the  violence  done  by  him  to  Bod- 
hildr,  and  other  acts  of  his  revenge^,  all  in  fact  that 
is  most  important  in  this  part  of  his  history.  Grimm 
reminds  me*  that  the  Wilkina  Saga  makes  Weland 

'  D.  Myth.  p.  351.  "  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1172. 

'  Weland  him  be  wurman 
wrseces  cunnade 


*  D.  Myth.  p.  351. 


sits  San  hine  NiiShad  on 
n^de legde 
swoncre  seonobande, 
on-oyllau  mon. 

Beadohilde  ne  wses 

hyre  hroSra  dea^ 

on  sefan  swa  sar 

swa  hyre  sylfra  Mng, 

Sset  heo  gearolice 

ongieten  haefde 

ISset  heo  eacen  wses,  etc. 


422  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  constructor  of  a  wondrous  boat,  and  that  the 
act  of  the  son  may  thus  have  been  transferred  to 
the  father,  Weland's  boat  to  Wade. 

In  the  Northern  tradition  appears  a  brother  of 
Weland,  named  Eigil  or  Egil,  who  is  celebrated  as 
an  archer,  and  to  whom  belongs  the  wide-spread 
tule  which  has  almost  past  into  accredited  history 
in  the  case  of  William  Tell ;  this  tale  given  by  Saxo 
Grammaticus  to  Toko,  by  the  Jomsvikinga  Saga 
to  Palnatoki,  and  by  other  authorities  to  other 
heroes  from  the  twelfth  till  the  very  end  of  the  fif- 
teenth century,  but  most  likely  of  the  very  high- 
est antiquity  in  every  part  of  Europe,  was  beyond 
doubt  an  English  one  also,  and  is  repeated  in  the 
ballad  of  William  of  Cloudesley :  it  is  therefore  pro- 
bable that  it  belongs  to  a  much  older  cycle,  and 
was  as  well  known  as  the  legends,  of  Wada  and 
Weland,  with  which  it  is  so  nearly  connected.  Ei- 
gil would  among  the  Anglosaxons  have  borne  the 
form  of  ^gel,  and  accordingly  we  find  places 
compounded  with  this  name, — thus  ^glesbyrig, 
now  Aylesbury  in  Buckinghamshire ;  .^glesford, 
now  Aylsford  in  Kent ;  ^gl eslona,  in  Worcester^ ; 
^gleswur'S,  now  Aylsworth  in  Northamptonshire  ^j 
also  vEgleswyl ;  and  lastly  Aylestone  in  Leicester- 
shire. 

The  Wilkina  Saga  and  the  Scald's  Complaint 
already  cited  from  the  Codex  Exoniensis,  lead  us 
next  to  the  legends  of  Deodric  (Dietrich  von  Bern) 
and  Eormenric,  (Hermanaric),  and  thl'ough  the  lat- 
ter to  Sigfried  and  the  other  heroes  of  the  Nibe- 

'  Ood.  Dipl.  No,  549.  ^  md.  Nos.  591,  423. 


CH.xn.]    HEATHENDOM.    DEO'DRrC.   EOBMAJSfRl'O.       423 

lungen  cycle.  The  heroic  or  even  godlike  character 
of  Dietrich  has  been  well  made  out  by  Grimm  \  and 
the  historical  Theodoric  the  Ostrogoth  vanishes  in 
his  traditional  representative.  The  Anglosaxon 
poet  evidently  refers  to  the  latter,  not  indeed  from 
the  story  he  tells,  but  from  the  collocation  of  Deo- 
dric  among  merely  mythical  personages.  Perhaps, 
as  the  whole  scope  of  his  poem  is  to  relate  the  mis- 
fortunes of  the  great  and  thus  draw  consolation  for 
his  own,  the  thirty  years'  residence  in  Mseringa- 
burg  may  be  considered  as  a  reference  to  Deodric's 
flight  from  before  Otachar^  and  long-continued 
exile.     In  a  Saxon  menology  ^  of  great  antiquity, 

'  D.  Myth.  p.  346. 

'  The  Hiltibrants  Lied  says, 

Hiltibrant  haetti  min  fater.  ih  heittu  Hadubrant. 

forn  her  ostar  gihueit.    floh  her  Otachres  nid. 

hina  mit  Theotrihhe.    enti  sinero  degano  filu. 


sid  Detrihhe.   darba  gistontiim. 

fateres  mines,    dat  uuas  so  friuntlaos  man. 
For  remarks  on  Deodric's  exile  see  W.  Grimm,  Deutsche  Heldenaage, 
pp.  22,  24,  34,  30,  37, 201,  204. 

'  MS.  0.  C.  C.  Cantab.  No.  179.  "  On  'Sone  eabtateo'San  dreg  «8e3 
monlSes  by?  See  Johannes  tj'd  'Sees  papan  -j  ^ses  martyrea,  ee  gedyde 
J>urh  Godes  myht  blyndum  men  gesyhtse.  Done  Johannes  for  a;fstum 
[hSht  cwellan]  Theodoricus  se  wees  Gotena  cyning  in  Eauenna  ^sere 
ceastre  ;  -j  sum  wSstensetla  on  ?am  ealonde  ^e  is  nemned  Liparus,  he 
SiEde  sciplKeudum  mannum  tSset  he  gesawe  Johannes  sawle  ^ses  papan 
Iffldan  Sone  cyning  ISe  hine  ofsldh  gebundenne  on  ^cum  witum.  He 
cwaeS,  se  Godes  feow,  to  Sam  scipli'Sendum  :  Girsan  daeg  on  fSa  nigo- 
8in  tid  daeges,  Sajt  is  on  Sone  ncin,  peodricus  wfes  gelfeded  ungyrd  -j 
unsceod  •j  eac  gebunden  be  Sam  handum,  betweoh  Johanne  Sam  papan 
■j  Finianum  5am  ealdormen,  "j  he  wees  fram  heom  aworpen  on  byrnende 
seaS  on  Sysum  neah-ealande,  •]  Sset  is  nemned  Ulcania.  And  Sa  sci- 
ph'Sende  Sa  Sfet  gehyredon,  Hg  ymbhydelice  amearcodon  Sone  deeg,  -^ 
him  Sa  cyrdon  eft  to  Etelwara  msegSe,  Sser  hig-  Sone  cyning  ser  lyfi- 
gende  forlston  ;  -j  hig  Sa  eft  hine  Sser  deadne  gem^tton,  Sy  ylcan  dsege 
?e  his  wite  Sam  Godes  hedwe  setywed  wees.   Deet  wees  swiSe  riht  Saat 


424  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

the  author,  after  stating  the  eighteenth  of  May  to 
be  the  commemoration  of  St.  John,  Pope  and  Mar- 
tyr, goes  on  to  say,  that  an  anchoret  on  Lipari  told 
certain  sailors  how  at  a  particular  time  he  had  seen 
king  Theodoric,  ungirt,  barefoot,  and  bound,  led 
between  St.  John  and  St.  Finian,  and  by  them 
hurled  into  the  boiling  crater  of  the  neighbouring 
island  Vulcano.  That  on  their  return  to  Italy  the 
sailors  discovered  by  comparison  of  dates  that 
Theodoric  died  on  the  day  on  which  the  anchoret 
noticed  his  punishment  by  the  hands  of  his  vic- 
tims. The  author  expressly  tells  it  was  Theodo- 
ricus,  the  king  of  the  Goths  in  Ravenna ;  and  he 
concludes  by  saying,  "  That  was  Theodoricus  the 
king  whom  we  call  Deodric,"  which  we  can  only  un- 
derstand by  supposing  him  to  allude  to  the  mythical 
Deodric.  Alfred  seems  also  to  have  known  some- 
thing of  the  mythical  Deodric  when  he  says,  "  he 
wses  Amaling,"  a  fact  historically  true  of  the  Ostro- 
goth Theodoric,  but  yjet  unlikely  to  have  been  con- 
tained in  yElfred's  Latin  authorities.  The  Travel- 
ler's Song  says^,  "  Deodric  weold  Froncum,"  Theo- 
doric ruled  the  Franks,  but  this  I  should  rather 
understand  of  one  of  the  historical  Merwingian 
kings,  than  of  the  Ostrogoth. 

The    legends  of   Eormanric   were   obviously  fa- 
miliar to  the  Anglosaxons :  in  the  so  often  quoted 

he  fram  '8am  twam  manniim  wsere  sended  on  ISaet  ^ce  fyr,  tja^e  he  h^r 
imrihtlice  ofsldh  on  ^isum  life.  Rset  wses  psodorious  tSone  we  nemna'S 
Deodric."  See  further  illustrations  of  this  strange  tale  in  the  Deutsche 
Heldensage,  p.  38,  where  Otto  of  Freisingen  is  quoted,  hut  who  does 
not  give  nearly  so  many  details  as  the  Anglosaxon  legend. 
'  Trav.  Song,  1.  47. 


CH.  xn.]        HEATHENDOM.    EORMANRI'C,  ETC.  425 

poem  of  the  Traveller's  Song,  this  celebrated  prince 
is  mentioned  more  than  once,  as  well  as  in  the 
poem  which  contains  the  notices  of  Weland,  Beado- 
hild  and  Deodric.  The  character  given  of  him  in 
both  these  compositions  denotes  a  familiarity  with 
the  details  of  his  history,  as  we  find  them  almost 
universally  in  the  Northern  traditions,  and  more 
particularly  those  of  his  wealth,  his  cruelty  and  his 
treachery. 

In  Beowulf  we  have  a  somewhat  further  develop- 
ment of  his  history.  We  there  learn  incidentally  that 
Hama  (the  Ammius  of  Saxo  Grammaticus)  carried 
off  from  him  the  Brosinga-men  or  mythical  collar 
of  the  goddess  Freya.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
this  necklace,  called  in  the  Norse  traditions  Men 
Brisinga,  is  of  a  most  thoroughly  mythological  cha- 
acter^,  and  any  reference  to  it  in  Saxon  poetry  is 
welcome  evidence   of  ancient  heathendom  :  more- 


'  When  Loki  announced  to  Freya  that  Thorr  would  not  recover  Ms 
hammer  unless  she  married  the  giant  who  had  become  possessed  of  it, 
she  trembled  with  rage,  so  that  the  halls  of  the  gods  shook  under  her, 
and  the  Men  Brisinga  hurst  from  her  neck :  again  when  Thorr  disguises 
himself  in  her  distinctive  dress,  he  does  not  forget  the  necklace, 
Hamarsheimt,  xiii.  xv.  xix.  I  am  inclined  to  think  the  Saxon  reading 
erroneous,  and  that  Brdsinga  is  a  mere  error  of  copying.  The  meaning 
of  the  word  is  obscure :  Brising  in  Norse  denotes  a  fierce  flame,  and  the 
name  of  the  collar  has  been  explained  from  its  bright  and  burning  co- 
lour. Q-rimm  suggests  a  derivation  from  a  verb  brisan  (found  in  Jliddle 
German  under  the  form  brisen)  nodare,  nodis  constringere,  in  reference 
to  the  form  of  its  links.  But  the  main  difficulty  in  my  opinion  is  found 
in  the  plural  genitive  of  the  patronymic,  and  I  would  almost  prefer  the 
hypothesis  of  our  having  entirely  lost  the  lay  which  described  its  orio-in : 
others  we  certainly  have  lost  which  had  reference  to  it,  as  for  instance 
Loki's  and  Heimdallr's  contention  for  it.  Saxo  Grammaticus  has  a 
.  story  probably  about  its  origin  (p.  13)  which  is  totally  unsatisfactory. 
Were  the  Brisingas  (sons  of  fii'e  ?)  its  first  possessors  or  makers  ? 


436  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [booki 

over  the  Anglosaxon  poet  alone  mentions  it  in  con- 
nection with  Eormanric.  This  peculiar  feature  is 
as  little  known  to  the  other  Germanic  nations  as 
the  beautiful  legend  of  Scyld  Scefing,  the  loves  of 
Geat  and  MtEShild,  the  dragon-slaughter  of  Sig- 
mund,  the  wars  of  Hengest  and  Finn  Folcwalding, 
or  the  noble  epos  of  Beowulf  itself:  unfortunately 
we  have  no  detail  as  to  the  circumstances  under 
which  the  necklace  of  the  goddess  came  into  the 
possession  of  Eormanric. 

The  Traveller's  Song  however  has  traces  of  many 
heroes  who  are  closely  connected  with  the  tradi- 
tional cyclus  of  Eormanric :  among  these  are  Sifeca 
(the  false  Sibich  of  Germany)  and  Becca,  the  Bikki 
of  the  corresponding  Norse  versions,  whom  it 
makes  chieftain  of  the  Baningas,  perhaps  the  "  sons 
of  mischief"  from  Bana.  Hama,  already  named, 
and  Wudga,  the  Wittich  and  Heirae  of  Germany, 
occur  in  the  same  poem :  so  also  the  terrible  Jitla, 
Attila  the  Hun,  the  ^tli  of  Scandina\'ia,  the  Etzel 
of  the  Nibolungen  cycle.  In  the  same  composi- 
tion we  find  GiiShere,  king  of  the  Burgundians,  the 
Norse  Gunnar,  and  German  Gunther  ;  and  Hagena, 
probably  the  Norse  Hogni,  and  Hagen  the  mur- 
derer of  Sigfried.  The  Traveller's  Song,  and  the 
Scop's  Complaint  contain  no  mention  of  the  great 
hero  of  the  Xorse  and  German  epos,  Sigurdr  Fafnis- 
bani,  Sigfried,  the  betrothed  of  the  Shieldmay  Bry- 
hyldur,  the  husband  of  the  fairhaired  Chriemhilt. 

All  the  more  welcome  to  us  is  the  episode  in 
Beowulf,  which  not  only  records  the  tale  of  Sigurdr, 
though  under  the  name  of  his  father  Sigmund,  and 


CH.XII.]  HEATHENDOM.    BEO'WULF.  427 

makes  particular  mention  of  the  dragon-slaughter 
(Fafnis-bani) — which  is  a  central  point  in  the  Norse 
tradition,  although  hardly  noticed  at  all  in  the  Ni- 
belungen  Lied, — but  also  refers  to  the  fearful  ad- 
ventures which  the  Edda  relates  of  the  hero  and 
his  kinsman  Sinfiotli  (Fitela)  which  appear  totally 
unknown  in  Germany. 

Having  said  thus  much  of  the  heroic  personages 
to  whom  so  large  a  portion  of  Northern  and  Ger- 
manic tradition  is  devoted,  it  becomes  possible  for 
me  to  refer  to  the  great  work  of  James  Grimm  on 
German  mythology  for  a  demonstration  of  the  con- 
nection between  these  heroes  and  the  gods  of  our 
forefathers.  I  regret  that  my  own  limits  render  it 
impossible  for  me  to  enter  at  greater  length  upon 
this  part  of  the  subject;  but  it  requires  a  work  of 
no  small  dimensions,  and  devoted  to  it  exclusively  : 
and  it  is  therefore  sufficient  to  show  the  identity 
of  our  own  heroic  story  and  that  of  Scandinavia  and 
the  continent,  and  thus  enable  the  English  reader 
to  adapt  to  his  own  national  traditions  the  conclu- 
sions of  learned  enquirers  abroad,  with  respect  to 
their  own^. 

-  I  would  particularly  call  attention  to  W.  Grimm's  Deutsche  Hel- 
denaage,  P.  MuUer's  SagabiblLotliek,  and  J.  Grimm's  Deutsclie  My- 
thologie ;  the  last,  a  very  storehouse  of  all  that  bears  upon  this 
most  interesting  and  important  subject,  important  whether  we  consider 
it  merely  in  a  literary  point  of  view,  or  in  the  far  higher  one  of  a  reve- 
lation of  the  creed  of  our  forefathers,  the  sources  of  their  hope  and  fear, 
the  basis  of  their  moral  being  and  directing  motive  of  their  actions.  If 
it  be  true  that  nothing  human  can  be  without  interest  for  a  man,  surely 
that  which  tells  of  the  religious  belief  of  our  forefathers  must  be  of  the 
deepest  and  nearest  interest.  It  has  had  something  to  do  with  making 
us  what  we  are. 


i-JS  THE  SAXOXS  IX  EXGLAXD.  [book  l 

DIVIXATIOX  AXD  WITCHCRAFT.— The 
attachment  of  the  Germauic  races  to  divination 
attracted  the  notice  of  Tacitus ^i  he  says:  "They 
are  as  great  observers  of  auspices  and  lots  as  any. 
The  way  they  use  their  lots  is  simple ;  they  cut 
into  slips  a  branch  taken  from  an  oak  or  beech, 
and  having  distinguished  them  by  certain  marks, 
scatter  them  at  random  and  as  chance  wills  over  a 
white  cloth.  Then  if  the  enquiry  is  a  public  one, 
the  state-priest. — if  a  private  one,  the  father  of  the 
house  himself, — having  prayed  to  the  gods,  and 
lookins:  up  to  heaven,  thrice  raises  each  piece,  and 
interprets  them  when  raised  according  to  the  marks 
before  inscribed  upon  them.  If  they  turn  out  un- 
favourable, there  is  no  further  consultation  that 
day  about  the  same  mat*:er  :  if  they  are  favourable, 
the  authority  of  omens  is  still  required.  Even  here 
they  are  acquainted  v^ith  a  mode  of  interrogating 
the  voices  and  flight  of  birds  ;  but  it  is  peculiar  to 
this  race  to  try  the  presages  and  admonitions  of 
horses.  These,  white  in  colour  and  subject  to  no 
mortal  work,  are  fed  at  the  public  cost  in  the  sacred 
groves  and  woods :  then  being  harnessed  to  the 
sacred  chariot,  they  are  accompanied  by  the  priest, 
the  king  or  the  prince  of  the  state,  who  observe 
their  neighings  and  snor tings.  Xor  has  any  au- 
gury more  authority  than  this,  not  only  among  the 
common  people,  but  even  the  nobles  and  priests : 
for  they  think  themselves  the  ministers,  but  the 
horses  the  confidants,  of  the  gods.  There  is  an- 
other customary  form  of  auspices,  by  which  they 

'  Germ-x. 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    DIVINATION.  429 

inquire  concerning  the  event  of  serious  wars.  They 
match  a  captive  of  the  nation  with  which  they  are 
at  war,  however  they  can  come  by  him,  with  a  se- 
lect champion  of  their  own,  each  armed  with  his 
native  weapons.  The  victory  of  this  one  or  that 
is  taken,  as  a  presage." 

The  use  of  lots  as  connected  with  heathendom, 
that  is,  as  a  means  of  looking  into  futurity,  con- 
tinued in  vogue  among  the  Saxons  till  a  late  period, 
in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  the  clergy :  this  is  evident 
from  the  many  allusions  in  the  Poenitentials,  and 
the  prohibitions  of  the  secular  law.  The  augury  by 
horses  does  not  appear  to  have  been  used  in  Eng- 
land, from  any  allusion  at  least  which  still  survives ; 
but  it  was  still  current  in  Germany  in  the  seventh 
century,  and  with  less  change  of  adjuncts  than  we 
usually  find  in  the  adoption  of  heathen  forms  by 
Christian  saints.  It  was  left  to  the  decision  of  horses 
to  determine  where  the  mortal  remains  of  St.  Gall 
should  rest ;  the  saint  would  not  move,  till  certain 
unbroken  horses  were  brought  and  charged  with  his 
coffin:  then,  after  prayers,  we  are  told,  "Elevato 
igitur  a  pontifice  nee  non  et  a  sacerdote  feretro,  et 
equis  superposito,  ait  episcopus  :  '  Tollite  frena  de 
capitibus  eorum,  et  pergant,  ubi  Dominus  voluerit." 
Vexillum  ergo  crucis  cum  luminaribus  adsumeba- 
tur,  et  psallentes,  equis  praecedentibus,  via  incipie- 
batur^."  It  may  be  imagined  that  the  horses  in- 
fallibly found  the  proper  place  for  the  saint's  burial- 
place;  but  what  is  of  importance  to  us  is  the  use 
of  horses  on  the  occasion.  In  this  country  how- 
'  Vit.  Anon.  Soi.  Galli,    Pertz,  Monum.  ii,  17. 


430  THE  SAXOXS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

ever  we  haA'e  some  record  of  a  divination  in  which 
not  horses  but  a  bull  played  a  principal  part ;  and 
as  bulls  were  animals  sacred  to  the  great  goddess 
Nerthus,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  this  was  a  remnant 
of  ancient  heathendom.  St.  Benedict  on  one  oc- 
casion appeared  to  a  fisherman  named  Wulfgeat, 
and  desired  him  to  announce  to  duke  .^^elwine^, 
his  lord,  that  it  was  his  the  saint's  wish  to  have  a 
monastery  erected  to  himself,  to  the  pious  mother 
of  mercy  and  All  virgins.  The  spot  was  to  be  where 
he  should  see  a  bull  stamp  with  his  foot.  To  use 
the  words  of  the  saint  to  the  fisherman,  "  Ut  ei 
igitur  haec  omnia  per  ordinem  innotescas  exhortor, 
sermonem  addens  sermoni,  quatenus  scrutetur  di- 
ligentius  in  loco  praedicto  quomodo  noctu  fessa 
terrae  sua  incumbant  animalia,  ac  ubi  taurum  sur- 
gentem  pede  dextro  viderit  percutere  terram,  ibidem 
proculdubio  xenodochii  sciat  se  aram  erigere  de- 
bere."  Obedient  to  the  order,  duke  ^^elwine  set 
out  in  the  morning  to  find  the  spot :  "  Mira  res,  et 
miranda,  ubi  vir  praedictus  insulam  est  ingressus, 

animalia  sua  in  modum  crucis,  taurum  vero 

in  medio  eorum  iacereprospexit.  Et  sicut  quondam 
sancto  Clementi  agnus  pede  dextro  locum  fontis, 
sic  viro  isti  taurus  terram  pede  percutiendo  locum 
mensaefuturi  arcisterii  significavit  divinitus^."  St. 
Clement's  fountain  never  rolled  such  floods  of  gold 
as  found  their  way  to  the  rich  abbey  of  Eamsey! 
Other  details  of  heathendom  in  the  practices  of 

'  The  same  wliom  the  grateful  monks  have  distinguished  by  the 
name  of  Dei  amicus. 
'  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  581, 


CH.  xil]  heathendom.     WITOHORAFT.  431 

ordinary  life  must  be  left  to  the  appendix  to  this 
chapter;  but  a  cursory  reference  may  be  made  to 
what  appears  to  show  a  belief  in  the  evil  eye,  and 
that  practice  which  in  Latin  is  called  invuUuatio. 
The  former  of  these  is  mentioned  in  the  poem  of 
Beowulf  1,  where  Hro^gar,  warning  Beowulf  of  the 
frail  tenure  of  human  life,  adds,  "eagena  bearhtm," 
the  glance  of  eyes,  to  the  many  dangers  the  warrior 
had  to  fear : 

Nil  is  Bines  masgnes  blaed  Now  is  the  bloom  of  thy  strength 

dne  hwile,  for  a  little  while, 

eft  Bona  biS  soon  will  it  be 

Sset  tSeo  adl  oSSe  ecg  that  sickness  or  the  sword 

eafotSes  getw^feS,  shall  part  thee  from  thy  power, 

o68e  fyres  feng,  or  clutch  of  fire, 

oSSe  flodes  wylm,  or  wave  of  flood, 

oSSe  gripe  meoes,  or  gripe  of  sword, 

oS6e  gares  fliht  or  javelin's  flight, 

oBSe  atol  yldo,  or  ugly  age, 

o86e  eagena  bearhtm,  or  glance  of  eye, 

forsitteS  and  forsworceS.  shall  oppress  and  darken  thee  ! 

Invultuation  is  defined  by  Mr.  Thorpe  in  the  fol- 
lowing words  :  "a  species  of  witchcraft,  the  perpe- 
trators of  which  were  called  vultivoli,  and  are  thus 
described  by  John  of  Salisbury  :  Qui  ad  affectus  ho-» 
minum  immutandos,  in  moUiori  materia,  cera  forte 
vel  limo,  eorum  quos  pervertere  nituntur  effigies 
exprimunt^.     To  this  superstition  Virgil  alludes  : 

"  Limns  ut  hie  durescit,  et  haeo  ut  cera  liqnescit, 
Uno  eodemque  igni,  sic  nostro  Daphnis  amore. 

"  Of  the  practice  of  this  superstition,  both  in 
England  and  Scotland,  many  instances  are   to  be 

'  Beow.  1.  3520.  '  De  Nugis  Cmial.  lib.  i.  cap.  12. 


432  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

met  with ;  among  the  most  remarkable,  that  of  Ele- 
anor Cobhara,  duchess  of  Gloucester,  and  Stacey, 
servant  to  George  Duke  of  Clarence  ^." 

But  it  seems  to  include  also  the  practising  against 
the  life  of  an  enemy  by  means  of  a  waxen  or  other 
fig^ure,  in  which  pins  were  stuck,  or  against  which 
a  sharp  bolt  was  shot.  It  is  against  this  crime  that 
the  law  of  Henry  the  First  enacts^:  "Si  quis  ve- 
neno,  vel  sortilegio,  vel  invultuacione,  seu  maleficio 
aliquo,  faciat  homicidium,  sive  illi  paratum  sit  sive 
alii,  nihil  refert,  quin  factum  mortiferum,  et  nullo 
modo  redimendum  sit : "  and  this  is  perhaps  also 
intended  by  the  wovdlibldc  used  by  jESelstan^.  It 
is  also  probable  that  this  was  the  crime  for  which 
in  the  tenth  century  a  widow  was  put  to  death  by 
drowning  at  London  Bridge,  and  her  property  for- 
feited to  the  crown^.  Anglosaxon  homilies  however 
also  mention  philtres  of  various  kinds,  which  the 
people  are  warned  against  as  dangerous  and  damn- 
able heathendom. 

Such  are  the  fragments  of  a  system  which  atone 
time  fed  the  religious  yearnings  and  propped  the 
moral  faith  of  our  forefathers, — faint  notes  from  a 
chorus  of  triumphant  jubilation  which  once  rose  to 
heaven  from  every  corner  of  the  island. 

How  shall  we  characterize  it  1  As  a  dull  and  de- 
basing FetisJi-worsh'j),  worthy  of  African  savages  ? 
or  as  a  vague  and  colourless  Pantheism,  in  which 
religion  vanishes  away,  and  philosophy  gropes  for 
a  basis  which  it  cannot  find  %     I  think  not. 

'  Anc.  Laws  and  Inst.  vol.  ii.  Gloss.  '  Leg.  Hen.  Ixxi.  §  1. 

'  MSslst.  i.  §  6,  ■■  Cod,  Dipl.  No.  591, 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.    CONCLUSION.  433 

Contemplate  the  child  who  bounds  through  the 
wood,  or  pauses  in  delight  upon  the  meadow,  where 
he  wantons  in  the  very  joy  of  life  itself:  to  him 
this  great  creation  is  full  of  playmates,  beings  ani: 
mate  or  inanimate,  with  whom  he  shares  his  little 
pleasures,  to  whom  he  can  confide  his  little  sorrows. 
He  understands  their  language,  and  in  turn  he  has 
a  language  for  them,  which  he  thinks  they  under- 
stand :  he  knows  more  of  their  peculiarities  than 
the  halting  step  of  scientific  observation  is  always 
able  to  overtake ;  for  he  knows  what  science 
haughtily  refuses  to  contemplate  or,  it  may  be,  is 
unable  to  appreciate.  The  birds  speak  to  him,  the 
forests  whisper  to  him,  the  shadows  and  the  low 
tones  of  the  hill  and  valley  lull  him  to  repose,  the 
winds  wanton  with  his  curled  locks  and  blow  them 
over  his  shoulders,  the  streams  and  brooks  have 
spray  to  play  with  and  sprinkle  in  his  laughing 
eyes.  He  stands  before  the  great  spirit  of  nature, 
face  to  face,  and  knows  him  as  he  reveals  himself 
in  every  one  of  his  divine  forms ;  for  the  child  sees 
and  knows  the  secrets  of  God,  which  the  man,  alas ! 
is  condemned  to  forget.  Such  as  the  child  is,  has 
the  child-like  nation  been,  before  the  busy  hum 
of  commerce,  the  crashing  strokes  of  the  piston,  the 
heavy  murmur  of  innumerable  spinning-jennies 
necessarily  banished  more  natural  music  from  our 
ears.  An  age  that  thinks  about  itself  and  its  own 
capacity,  that  reflects  upon  its  own  processes  of 
thought,  and  makes  great  combinations  of  powers, 
and  anatomizes  nature  till  it  becomes  familiar  with 

VOL.  I.  2  F 


434  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

every  secret  of  creation,  may  be  an.  earnest  puri- 
tanical age,  a  stern  protestant  age,  one  that  will 
not  be  fed  with  imaginative  religions,  but  it  cannot 
be  one  of  implicit,  trusting,  fearing,  rejoicing,  trem- 
bling belief :  the  age  of  faith  ceased  where  the  age 
of  knowledge  began.  Man  knows  too  much,  per 
haps  believes  too  little :  he  will  not,  and  he  mus 
not,  yield  his  privilege  of  calm,  determined,  obstl 
nate  enquiry :  he  will,  and  should,  judge  for  him 
self,  weigh  evidence,  compare  and  reason,  and  de^ 
cide  for  himself  how  much  or  how  little  he  will 
receive  as  true.  How  can  he  wonder  at  the  stars, 
their  rising,  their  setting  or  their  eclipse  1  He  cal- 
culates where  new  planets  may  be  found :  he  weighs 
them  in  his  balances  when  found,  and  tells  not  only 
their  circumference  or  their  density,  but  how  long 
the  straggling  ray  of  light  that  started  from  them 
was  on  its  journey,  before  it  reached  the  eye  of  the 
gazer.  What  can  these  wavering  fragments  of  time 
and  space  be  to  him  who  calculates  duration  by  the 
nutation  of  suns,  or  the  scarcely  appreciable  differ- 
ence of  millennial  changes  1  Let  us  remember  what 
our  fathers  were,  and  consider  what  we  are.  For 
them  there  was  indeed  a  time,  a  period  to  tell  of, 

"when  the  Sun 
Knew  not  her  dwelling,  nor  the  Moon  his  power, 
And  the  Stars  knew  not  where  their  place  should  be  ! " 

We  know  their  places,  and  their  dwellings,  and 
their  power.  They  are  subordinated  to  a  hypo- 
thesis of  gravitation.  For  us  there  is  no  wavering 
bridge  of  the  Gods,  no  Bifrost  or  Asbru ;  our  rain- 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.     CONCLUSION.  435 

bow  is  a  shadowy  thing,  a  belt  of  deceptive  colours, 
the  reflection  of  a  sunbeam  in  the  multitudinous 
prisms  of  a  shower-cloud.  We  have  no  Hammer, 
wielded  by  the  Thunder-god,  and  dreaded  by  the 
giants ;  our  Miolner  has  vanished  into  the  indiffer- 
ence of  opposing  electricities.  Apothecaries'  Hall 
prepares  its  simples  without  the  aid  of  charms,  or 
invocation  of  divinities  ;  and  though  we  stand  as  yet 
but  on  the  threshold  of  science,  we  have  closed  for 
ever  behind  us  the  portals  of  mystery  and  belief.  For 
we  are  raised  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  times  gone 
by,  and  cast  a  calm  and  easy  view  over  the  country 
which  our  forefathers  wandered  through  in  fear 
and  trembling.  We  fear  not  what  they  feared;  we 
cling  not  to  what  they  clung  to,  for  relief  and  com- 
fort; we  have  set  up  our  own  idol,  the  Understanding, 
fortified  by  laborious  experience,  taught  by  repeated 
struggles  and  victories,  firmly  based  on  conquered, 
catalogued  and  inventoried  nature,  on  facts,  the 
stern  children  of  a  passionless  reality.  I  know  not 
whether  we  have  gained  or  lost  in  this  inevitable 
career  of  humanity ;  I  have  faith  only  that  He  who 
rules  the  purpose  of  the  ages,  has  thus  cast  our  lot 
in  the  infinite  love  and  wisdom  of  his  own  thought. 
But  not  to  us,  or  in  our  finite  forms  of  thought, 
can  the  world  be  as  once  it  was,  and  the  "  dull  ca- 
talogue of  common  things"  admits  no  admixture  of 
a  fancied  divinity ;  nay,  so  far  are  we  from  seeking 
to  instil  spirit  into  matter,  that  the  informing  soul 
itself  ceases  to  be  the  object  of  our  contemplation, 
while  we  are  busied  with  the  nerves  and  tendons, 

2f2 


436  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  I. 

or  charmed  with  the  wonderful  combination  of  de- 
tails that  form  the  perfect  whole.  We  stand  su- 
preme among  the  subjects  of  our  knowledge ;  and 
the  marvels  of  science  itself  will  now  not  form  the 
stock  in  trade  of  a  second-class  conjuror.  Observe 
the  man  who  threads  his  way  with  imperturbable 
security  and  speed  through  the  thoroughfares  of 
a  densely-peopled  metropolis  :  the  crowd  throng 
about  him,  yet  he  yields  here,  he  advances  there, 
till  at  length,  almost  unconsciously,  he  has  attained 
the  goal  of  his  desire.  He  is  familiar  with  the 
straight  lines  and  angles  that  surround  him,  he 
measures  his  position  and  stands  upright,  mis- 
taking, if  indeed  he  think  at  all,  the  inconceivably 
rapid  calculations  of  the  understanding  for  acts  of 
his  own  spontaneous  volition.  The  unaccustomed 
eye  of  the  child  cannot  do  this  ;  and  he  wavers  in 
his  steps  and  stumbles  from  point  to  point,  help- 
less, but  charming  in  his  helplessness,  till  practice 
brings  him  power,  and  he  too  walks  and  stands 
upright  among  men.  So  is  it  with  the  minds  of 
men  in  early  and  uninstructed  periods,  stumbling 
from  belief  to  belief,  resting  for  support  upon  every 
circumstance  of  surrounding  life,  and  unfurnished 
with  the  elements  of  scientific  reasoning,  which,  by 
assuring  certainty,  destroy  the  vague,  indefinite 
basis  of  faith,  or  bring  within  a  narrow  and  con- 
stantly decreasing  circle,  its  vague  and  indefinite 
object.  We  believe  the  results  of  Geometry,  the 
theorems  of  analytic  mathematics,  because  we  can- 
not help  ourselves,  cannot  escape  from  the  inevita- 


CH.  XII.]  HEATHENDOM.     CONCLUSION.  4.37 

ble  conclusion  involved  in  the  premises ;  but  we 
cannot  call  this  acquiescence  faith,  or  establish 
upon  it  a  moral  claim  before  our  own  conscience 
and  our  God.  And  as  there  can  be  no  reason  save 
in  the  unintelligible,  no  faith  save  in  the  impossi- 
ble, all  that  is  brought  within  the  realm  of  the  in- 
tellect, or  the  sphere  of  the  possible,  is  j  ust  so  much 
withdrawn  from  the  circle  of  religion. 

The  basis  of  the  religious  state  in  man  is  the 
sensation  of  weakness, — whether  that  weakness  be 
or  be  not  distinctly  traced  in  the  consciousness  to 
the  ignorance  which  is  its  cause,  or  to  the  ultimate, 
more  abstract  and  more  philosophical  conviction  of 
sinfulness,  in  the  conscience.  Man  cannot  rest  for 
his  anxious  desire  to  know  the  why  and  how  of 
every  phsenomenon  he  observes  :  this  restlessness  is 
the  law  of  his  intellect,  that  is,  the  condition  of  his 
humanity :  he  interrogates  the  pheenomena  them- 
selves, but  if  they  will  give  no  answer  to  his  ques- 
tion, he  will  seek  it  without  them.  In  himself  he 
will  seek  it  in  vain.  At  no  time,  at  no  stage  of  his 
development  can  he  understand  the  relation  of  the 
subject  and  the  object,  or  comprehend  the  copula 
that  unites  them.  The  philosopher  the  most  deeply 
trahied  in  watching  abstract  forms  of  thought,  ac- 
knowledges with  a  sigh  that  even  the  intuitions  of 
the  reason  halt  in  the  fetters  of  the  understanding, 
and  that  to  give  objective  reality  to  what  can  be 
known  only  in  the  forms  and  through  the  powers 
of  the  subjective,  is  at  best  to  be  guilty  of  a  noble 
treason  to  the  laws  of  pure  reasoning.     And  what 


438  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

shall  he  do,  who  is  not  trained  in  watching  abstract 
forms  of  thought"?  Is  he  more  likely  to  find  the 
answer  in  himself?  Alas,  no !  he  feels  only  too 
surely  that  his  nature  can  give  no  satisfying  re- 
sponse ;  that  his  confined  and  bounded  being  is 
itself  full  of  problems  which  remain  unsolved. 

And  now  let  this  state  be  considered  with  refer- 
ence to  the  early  inhabitant  of  a  world,  whose  secrets 
are  yet  undiscovered,  and  on  whom  no  light  of  hea- 
venly radiance  has  fallen.  For  him,  as  for  us,  there 
is  no  answer  either  in  the  phsenomenon  or  in  the 
observer :  but  he  has  no  reason  to  reject  the  sup- 
position of  a  supernatural  influence :  everything 
that  surrounds  him  is  filled  with  evidence  of  super- 
natural power.  He  lives  in  nearer  communion  than 
we  do  with  the  world  about  him :  his  frame,  not 
yet  clogged  and  vitiated  by  the  habits  of  an  ad- 
vanced cultivation,  is  more  alive  than  ours  to  the 
external  effects  of  natural  causes :  the  M'orld  itself, 
existing  under  diff'erent  conditions  of  climate,  dif- 
ferent electrical  combinations,  not  yet  subdued  by 
the  plough,  or  the  axe  of  the  forester,  not  yet 
bridled  and  trained  by  the  canal,  the  manufactory 
or  the  railroad,  has  effluences  which  act  upon  the 
nerves  and  fluids  of  the  man,  and  which  seem  to 
him  divine  emanations,  revelations  of  the  divinity 
within  the  lake,  the  mountain  and  the  tree :  the 
lake,  the  mountain  and  the  tree  he  peoples  then 
with  gods, — with  Nymphs  and  Nereids,  with  Oreads 
and  Hamadryads — to  whose  inward  and  spiritual 
action  the  outward  owes  its  power  and  its  form. 


CH.  xn,]  HEATHENDOM.    CONCLUSION.  4<?9 

But  the  outward  and  visible  is  not  a  sign  only,  of 
the  inward  and  spiritual ;  it  is  a  symbol,  a  part 
of  that  which  it  denotes ;  it  is  at  once  the  sower  and 
the  seed. 

In  no  age  can  man  be  without  the  great  ideas  of 
God,  of  right,  of  power,  of  love,  of  wisdom ;  but  an 
age  that  has  not  learnt  to  feed  upon  abstractions, 
must  find  the  realization  of  those  ideas  in  the  out- 
ward world,  and  in  a  few  familiar  facts  of  human 
nature.  It  strives  to  give  itself  an  account  of  itself, 
and  the  result  of  its  efforts  is  a  paganism,  always 
earnest  and  imaginative,  often  cruel  and  capricious, 
as  often  gentle,  affectionate  and  trusting — for  even 
in  spite  of  cruelty  and  caprice,  the  affections  will 
have  their  way,  and  trust  will  find  a  home.  Its  in- 
consistence is  the  offspring  not  of  guilt,  but  of  im- 
perfect knowledge :  it  seeks  the  great  solution  of 
all  religious  problems,  a  mediator  between  God  and 
man :  it  is  its  error,  but  not  necessarily  its  crime, 
that  it  finds  that  mediator  in  the  complex  of  the 
world  itself :  no  other  has  been  revealed  to  it ;  and 
the  reveries  of  philosophy  that  haunt  the  sounding 
Portico  or  the  flowery  swathes  of  Hymettus,  cannot 
tell  of  the  "Unknown  God"  to  the  agriculturist, 
the  huntsman  or  the  pirate. 

I  believe  in  two  religions  for  my  forefathers :  one 
that  deals  with  the  domestic  life,  and  normal  state 
of  peace;  that  sanctifies  the  family  duties,  pre- 
scribes the  relations  of  father,  wife  and  child,  di- 
vides the  land,  and  presides  over  its  boundaries ; 
that  tells  of  gods,  the  givers  of  fertility  and  increase, 
the  protectors  of  the  husbandman  and  the  herds- 


440  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

man ;  that  guards  the  ritual  and  preserves  the  li- 
turgy ;  that  pervades  the  social  state  and  gives  per- 
manence to  the  natural,  original  political  institu- 
tions. I  call  this  the  sacerdotal  faith,  and  I  will 
admit  that  to  its  teachers  and  professors  we  may 
owe  the  frequent  attempt  of  later  periods  to  give  an 
abstract,  philosophic  meaning  to  mythus  and  tradi- 
tion, and  to  make  dawning  science  halt  after  religion. 
The  second  creed  I  will  call  the  heroic ;  in  this 
I  recognize  the  same  gods,  transformed  into  powers 
of  war  and  victory,  crowners  of  the  brave  in  fight, 
coercers  of  the  wild  might  of  nature,  conquerors  of 
the  giants,  the  fiends  and  dragons ;  founders  of 
royal  families,  around  whom  cluster  warlike  com- 
rades, exulting  in  the  thought  that  their  deities 
stand  in  immediate  genealogical  relation  to  them- 
selves, and  share  in  the  pursuits  and  occupations 
which  furnish  themselves  with  wealth  and  dignity 
and  power.  Let  it  be  admitted  that  a  complete 
separation  never  takes  place  between  these  diiFerent 
forms  of  religion ;  that  a  wavering  is  perceptible 
from  one  to  the  other ;  that  the  warrior  believes 
his  warrior  god  will  bless  the  produce  of  his  pas- 
tures ;  that  the  cultivator  rejoices  in  the  heroic 
legend  of  Woden  and  of  Baldr,  because  the  culti- 
vator is  himself  a  warrior  when  the  occasion  de- 
mands his  services :  still,  in  the  ultimate  develop- 
ment and  result  of  the  systems,  the  original  distinc- 
tion may  be  traced,  and  tOyit  some  of  the  conclu- 
sions we  observe  must  necessarily  be  referred :  it 
is  thus  that  spells  of  healing  and  fruitfulness  sur- 
vive when  the  great  gods  have  vanished,  and  that 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.     CONCLUSION.  441 

the  earth,  the  hills,  the  trees  and  waters  retain  a 
portion  of  dimmed  and  bated  divinity  long  after 
the  godlike  has  sunk  into  the  heroic  legend,  or 
been  lost  for  ever. 

I  can  readily  believe  that  the  warrior  and  the 
noble  were  less  deeply  impressed  with  the  religious 
idea  than  the  simple  cultivator.     In  the  first  place, 
the  disturbed  life  and  active  habits  of  military  ad- 
venturers are  not  favourable  to  the  growth  of  re- 
ligious  convictions :    again,  there   is  no   tie  more 
potent  than  that  which  links  sacred  associations  to 
particular   localities,    and  acts,  unconsciously  per- 
haps but  pervasively,  upon  all  the  dwellers  near  the 
holy  spots :  the  tribe  may  wander  with  all  its  wealth 
of  thought  and  feeling ;  even  its  gods  may  accom- 
pany it  to  a  new  settlement ;  but  the  religio  loci, 
the  indefinable  influence  of  the  local  association, 
cannot  be  transported.     Habits  of  self-reliance,  of 
a  proud  and  scornful  independence,   are  not  con- 
sistent with  the  conviction  of  weakness,  which  is 
necessary  to  our  full  admission  of  the  divine  pre- 
eminence ;  and  the  self-confident  soldier  often  felt 
that  he  could  cope  with  gods  such  as  his  had  been 
described  to  be.     In  the  Greek  heroic  lay  Tydides 
could  attack,  defeat,  and  even  wound  Ares :  I  do 
not  know  that  the  Teutonic  mythology  ever  went 
so  far  as  this;  but  we  have  abundant  record    of 
a  contemptuous   disregard   with    which  particular 
heroes  of  tradition  treated  the  popular  religion. 
Some  selected  indeed  one  god  in  whom  they  placed 
especial  trust,  and  whom  they  worshipped  (as  far 
as  they  worshipped  at  all)  to  the  exclusion  of  the 


442  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [book  i. 

rest ;  but  more  must  have  participated  in  that  feel- 
ing which  is  expressed  in  a  Danish  song, 

"  I  trust  my  sword,  I  trust  my  steed, 
But  most  I  trust  myself  at  need ' ! " 

while  to  many  we  may  safely  apply  what  is  said  of  a 
Swedish  prince,  "han  var  mikit  blandinn  i  trunni," 
he  was  mightily  confused  in  his  belief.  Still  it  is 
certain  that  a  personal  character  was  attributed  to 
the  gods,  as  well  as  an  immediate  intervention  in 
the  affairs  of  life.  The  actual  presence  of  OJjinn 
from  time  to  time  on  the  battle-field,  in  the  storm, 
in  the  domestic  privacy  of  the  household,  was  firmly 
believed,  in  Scandinavia;  and  it  is  reasonable  to 
assume  that  Woden  would  have  been  found  as  ac- 
tive among  our  German  progenitors,  had  not  the 
earlier  introduction  of  Christianity  into  Teutonic 
Europe  deprived  us  of  the  mythological  records 
which  the  North  supplies.  Beda  tells  us  that 
Eadwini  of  Northumberland  sacrificed  and  ofi'ered 
thanks  to  his  gods  upon  the  birth  of  a  daughter. 
Ksedwald  of  Eastanglia,  even  after  his  nominal  con- 
version, continued  to  pay  his  offerings  to  idols, 
and  the  people  of  Essex,  when  labouring  under  the 
ravages  of  a  pestilence,  abjured  the  faith  of  Christ 
and  returned  to  the  service  of  the  ancient  gods. 
But  in  the  personality  of  God  alone  resides  the 
possibility  of  realizing  the  religious  idea. 

1  "  Fbrst  troer  jeg  mit  gode  svard, 

og  saa  min  gode  hest, 
demjist  ti'oer  jeg  mine  dannesvenne, 
jeg  troer  mig  self  allerbedst. " 
Many  examples  are  given  in  Grimm,  Mythol.  p.  7. 


CH.  xii.]  HEATHENDOM.     CONCLUSION.  44.3 

We  possess  no  means  of  showing  how  the  re- 
ligion of  our  own  progenitors  or  their  brethren  of 
the  continent,  had  been   modified,   purified,  and 
adapted  in  the  course  of  centuries  to  a  more  ad- 
vanced state  of  civilization,  or  the  altered  demands 
of  a  higher  moral  nature ;  but,  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  sixth  century  we  do  find  the  pregnant 
fact,   that   Christianity    met  but   little   resistance 
among  them,  and  enjoyed  an  easy  triumph,  or  at 
the  worst  a  careless  acquiescence,  even  among  those 
whose  pagan  sympathies  could  not  be  totally  over- 
come.  Two  suppositions,  indeed,  can  alone  explain 
the  facile  apostasy  to  or  from  Christianity,  which 
marked  the  career  of  the  earliest  converts.     Either 
from  a  conviction  of  the  inefficacy  of  heathendom 
had  proceeded  a  general  indifference  to  religious 
sanctions,  which  does  not  appear  to  answer  other 
conditions  of  the  problem,  or  the  moral  demands 
of  the  new  faith  did  not  seem  to  the  Saxons  more 
onerous  than  those  to  which  they  were  accustomed  ; 
for  it  is  the  amount  of  self-sacrifice  which  a  religion 
successfully  imposes  upon  its  votaries,  which  can 
alone  form  a  measure  of  its  influence.     The  fact 
that  a  god  had  perished,  could  sound  strangely  in 
the  ears  of  no  worshipper  of  Baldr  ;  the  great  mes- 
sage of  consolation, — that  he  had  perished  to  save 
sinful,  suffering  man, — ^justified  the  ways  of  God, 
and  added  an  awful  meaning  to  the  old  mythus. 
An  earnest,  thinking  pagan,  would,  I  must  believe, 
joyfully  accept  a  version  of  his  own  creed,  which 
offered  so  inestimable  a  boon,  in  addition  to  what 
he  had  heretofore  possessed.     The  final  destruction 


444  THE  SAXONS  IN  ENGLAND.  [booki. 

of  the  earth  by  fire  could  present  no  difficulties  to 
those  who  had  heard  of  Surtr  and  the  Twilight  of 
the  Gods,  or  of  Allfather's  glorious  kingdom,  raised 
on  the  ruin  of  the  intermediate  divinities.  A  state 
of  happiness  or  punishment  in  a  life  to  come  was 
no  novelty  to  him  who  had  shuddered  at  the  idea 
of  Nastrond :  Loki  or  Grendel  had  smoothed  the 
way  for  Satan.  Those  who  had  believed  in  runes 
and  incantations  were  satisfied  with  the  efficacy  of 
the  mass;  a  crowd  of  saints  might  be  invoked  in 
place  of  a  crowd  of  subordinate  divinities ;  the  holy 
places  had  lost  none  of  their  sanctity ;  the  holy 
buildings  had  not  been  levelled  with  the  ground, 
but  dedicated  in  another  name ;  the  pagan  sacrifices 
had  not  been  totally  abolished,  but  only  converted 
into  festal  occasions,  where  the  new  Christians 
might  eat  and  drink,  and  continue  to  praise  God : 
Hre'Se  and  Eostre,  Woden,  Tiw  and  Fricge,  Dunor 
and  Ssetere  retained  their  places  in  the  calendar  of 
months  and  days :  Erce  was  still  invoked  in  spells, 
Wyrd  still  wove  the  web  of  destiny;  and  while 
Woden  retained  his  place  at  the  head  of  the  royal 
genealogies,  the  highest  offices  of  the  Christian 
church  were  offered  to  compensate  the  noble  class 
for  the  loss  of  their  old  sacerdotal  functions.  How 
should  Christianity  fail  to  obtain  access  where  Pa- 
ganism stepped  half  way  to  meet  it,  and  it  could 
hold  out  so  many  outward  points  of  union  to  pa- 
ganism ? 

We  dare  not  question  the  decrees  of  omnipotence, 
or  enquire  into  the  mysterious  operations  of  omni- 
scient God  ;  it  is  not  for  us  to  measure  his  infinite 


CH.  xn.]  HEATHENDOM.     CONCLUSION.  445 

wisdom  by  the  rules  of  our  finite  intelligence,  or  to 
assume  that  his  goodness  and  mercy  can  be  appre- 
ciated and  comprehended  by  the  dim,  wavering 
light  of  our  reason ;  but  man  feels  that  in  every 
age  man  has  had  a  common  nature,  a  common 
hope  and  a  common  end  of  being  ;  and  we  shall  do 
no  wrong  either  to  philosophy  or  to  religion,  if  we 
believe  that  even  in  the  errors  of  paganism  there 
lay  the  germs  of  truth  ;  and  that  the  light  which 
hghteth  every  one  that  cometh  into  the  world,  was 
vouchsafed  in  such  form  and  measure  as  best  to 
subserve  the  all-wise,  all-holy,  and  all-merciful  ob- 
jects of  creation ! 


APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX    A. 


MABKS. 

The  following  patronymical  names  I  believe  to  be  those  of  ancient 
Marks.  The  first  portion  of  them  is  derived  from  the  Codex 
Diplomatious  and  other  original  authorities :  the  second  portion 
contains  names  inferred  from  the  actual  local  names  in  England  at 
the  present  day. 


iEshngas. 

Kent.          Cod. 

Dipl.  : 

No.  111. 

^scingas. 

Surrey. 

314. 

Anningas. 

Northamptonshire. 

445. 

Antingas. 

Norfolk. 

785. 

^feningas. 

1073. 

Berecingas. 

Essex. 

38. 

Besingas. 

994. 

Banesingas. 

Oxfordshire. 

81. 

Boerlingas. 

Kent. 

152. 

Beardingaa. 

Kent. 

207. 

Beading  as. 

Sussex. 

314 

Billingas. 

1000. 

Bruningas. 

374, 1113. 

Braheingas. 

Hertfordshire. 

410. 

Brytfordingas. 

Hampshire. 

421,  985,  1108, 

Brydingas. 

Wiltshire. 

436. 

Brydingas. 

Dorsetshire. 

447. 

VOL.  I. 

2    G 

450 

APPENDIX  A. 

Bydelingas.      Nortliainptoiishire.  Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  445. 

Beaddingas. 

Me  of  Wight. 

475. 

Beorhfeldingas. 

1175. 

Beringas. 

Kent. 

518. 

Buccingas. 

Chron.  Sax.  918 

Bulungas. 

Somersetshire.  Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  569. 

Birlingas. 

Worcestershire. 

570. 

Bromleagingas. 

Kent. 

667. 

Beorganstedingas. 

Sussex. 

663. 

Bocoingas. 

Essex. 

698. 

Beorhtingas. 

Sussex. 

782. 

Bercingas. 

Suffolk. 

907. 

Byrtingas. 

Warwickshire. 

916. 

Culingas. 

Kent. 

132. 

Centingas. 

Chron.  Sax.  999, 

Crangas. 

Kent.          Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  179. 

Ceanningas. 

1193. 

Coliugas. 

Wiltshire. 

336. 

Cearningas. 

1212. 

Ciwingas. 

Hertfordshire. 

410. 

Cytringas. 

Northamptonshire. 

443. 

Cnyllingas. 

Northamptonshire . 

480. 

Cystaningas. 

Kent. 

657. 

Cateringas. 

722. 

Coringas. 

Lincolnshire. 

953. 

Cyceringas. 

957. 

Dicelingas. 

Sussex. 

314, 

Dentuningas. 

Northamptonshire. 

445. 

Doccingas. 

Norfolk. 

759. 

Eohingas. 

Kent. 

121. 

Englungas. 

123. 

Eastringas. 

Northamptonshire. 

480. 

Earmingas. 

Cambridgeshire. 

563. 

THE  MARK. 

46: 

Earningas. 

Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  1320. 

Embasingas. 

Hampshire. 

673. 

Eastuningas. 

1023. 

Eoforddningas. 

Northamptonshire. 

736. 

Erpingas. 

Norfolk. 

785. 

Efflngas. 

Surrey. 

812. 

Erningas. 

Cambridgeshire. 

907. 

Eerlingas. 

Somersetshire. 

73. 

Fullingas. 

987. 

Fooingas. 

Kent. 

207. 

Fasingas. 

1083. 

Fearningas. 

Hampshire, 

450. 

Fearnbeorgingas 

Kent. 

657. 

Fingringas. 

Essex. 

685. 

FearDingas. 

Somersetshire. 

723. 

Frmnmgas. 

Kent. 

896. 

Glsestingas. 

Somersetshire. 

49. 

Geddingas. 

Middlesex. 

101. 

Gumeningas. 

Middlesex. 

116. 

Gustingas. 

Wiltshire. 

174. 

Getingas. 

Surrey. 

318. 

Garungas. 

Kent. 

364. 

Grundlingas. 

Worcestershire. 

548. 

Gildingas. 

Kent. 

790. 

GiUingas. 

809,Chron.  1010' 

Gyrstlingas. 

967. 

Hallingas. 

Kent. 

160. 

Hsestingas. 

Chron.  Sax.  1060. 

Heallingas. 

Worcestershire.  Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  209. 

Heretuningas. 

Dorsetshire. 

412. 

Hrepingas. 

990. 

Eoppingaa. 

Surrey. 

537. 

Hseglingas. 

1193. 

2  g2 


452 

APPENDIX  A. 

Heantuningas. 

Cod.Dipl. 

No.  1212. 

Heartingas. 

Cambridgesliire. 

533. 

HwEessingas. 

Sussex. 

591. 

Hohtuningas. 

Hampshire. 

633. 

Hnutscillingas. 

Hampshire. 

642. 

Holingas.^ 

Kent. 

722, 

Heningas. 

Northamptonshire. 

733. 

Herelingas. 

Norfolk. 

782. 

Hodingas. 

Hampshire. 

783. 

Hanningas. 

Norfolk. 

785. 

Hellingas. 

Norfolk. 

809, 

Horningas, 

Hampshire. 

556. 

Homingas. 

Norfolk. 

740. 

Horningas. 

Oxfordshire. 

775. 

Horningas. 

Somersetshire. 

816, 

Homingas. 

Cambridgeshire. 

907. 

Hicelingas. 

971. 

Hsecingas. 

Kent. 

364. 

Ircingas. 

Chron.  Sax.  918, 

Lingas. 

Middlesex.  Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  159. 

Lsellingas. 

Essex. 

715. 

Lambumingas. 

Berkshire. 

792. 

LinfrodingaSi 

1133, 

Lacingas. 

1153. 

Merlingas. 

Somersetshire. 

73. 

Mundlingas. 

Kent. 

107. 

Mallingas. 

Kent. 

240. 

Modingas. 

Kent. 

287. 

Mich^mingas. 

Surrey. 

537. 

Meringas. 

809. 

Msessingas. 

953. 

Nessingas. 


813. 


Neddingas. 


Oddingas. 


THE  MAEK. 
SuiFolk.        Cod.  Dipl.  No.  907. 

Worcestershire.  209. 


453 


Pegingas. 

257. 

Pseooingas. 

Sussex. 

414. 

Purbioingas. 

Dorsetshire. 

418. 

Palingas. 

Sussex. 

432. 

Puningas. 

Sussex. 

481. 

Piooingas. 

812. 

Piperiflgas. 

1001. 

Peartingas. 

1016. 

Eicingas. 

Essex, 

35. 

Roegingas. 

Kent. 

196. 

Eeadingas. 

Berkshire. 

685. 

Rodingas. 

907. 

fiooingas. 

1014. 

Euwanoringas. 

1163. 

Stoppingas. 

Warwickshire. 

83. 

Sunningas. 

Berkshire. 

214. 

Sempingas. 

Lincolnshire. 

267. 

Stseningas. 

Sussex. 

314. 

Scearingas. 

Berkshire. 

357. 

Suntingas. 

North  amptonshire . 

445. 

Snotingas. 

Chron.  Sax.  922. 

SuStuningas. 

Hampshire.  Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  578. 

Stameringas. 

Berkshire. 

762. 

Seaxlingas. 

Norfolk. 

782. 

Scealdedeningas. 

Hampshire. 

783. 

Stutingas. 

Kent. 

773. 

Soitingas. 

1042. 

Terringas. 

Sussex. 

1138. 

Terringas. 

Kent. 

405. 

454 

APPENDIX  A. 

Totingas. 

Surrey.         Cod.  Dipl. 

,  No.  363. 

Totingas. 

Norfolk. 

785. 

Teofuntingas. 

Wiltshire. 

379. 

Tudingas. 

Sussex. 

593. 

Terlingas. 

Essex. 

907. 

I'iccmgas. 

928. 

Uggafordingas. 

WiltsMre. 

778. 

"Wocingas. 

Surrey. 

168. 

Wigingas. 

Kent. 

225. 

Wigmgas. 

Hertfordshire. 

Chron. 

,  Sax.  921, 

Wealthsemingas. 

Hampshire.  Cod.  Dipl 

.No.  342. 

Weodiiningas. 

Northamptonshire. 

399. 

"Wrsetlingas. 

399. 

Wellingas. 

Hertfordshire. 

410. 

Wealingas. 

716. 

1  1016 ; 
1  Chron. 

1061. 

Wealingas. 

•  Sax.  1013. 

Wealingas. 

Hampshire.  Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  442. 

Welingas. 

Wiltshire. 

462. 

Welingas. 

1069; 

1154. 

Witringas. 

Sussex. 

464. 

Wyrtingas. 

Hampshire. 

481. 

WoSringas. 

Kent. 

492. 

Wudutuningas. 

Hampshire. 

638. 

Wealdingas. 

Suffolk. 

685. 

Wanetingas. 

Berkshire. 

698. 

Witeringas. 

992. 

Weopingas. 

721. 

Westmoringas. 

Chron. 

Sax.  966. 

Wilringas. 

Suffolk.        Cod.  Dipl. 

No.  759. 

Wselsingas. 

Norfolk. 

759. 

Wylfingas. 

1135. 

"Wratingas. 

907. 

Wanhaemingas. 

1135. 

THE  MARK. 


455 


WinHngas.  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  907. 

Wasingas.  1159;  1173. 

"Wedringas.  907. 

Watingas.  907. 

Wintringas.  953. 

Weargebwrningas.  Hampsliire.  783. 

Wimbeduningas.  Surrey.  537. 


Ytingas. 


1228.  Chron.  Sax.  906. 


Dutingas. 

Hampsbire.  Cod. 

,  Dipl.  No.  752. 

Dorningas. 

Kent. 

207. 

Dristlingas. 

"Woroestersbire. 

570. 

Writolas. 

Essex. 

35. 

Hogebura. 

Hampshire. 

589. 

Holigan. 

952. 

Momelas. 

952. 

"Weegelas. 

Somersetshire. 

774. 

Beohbieme. 

Kent. 

657. 

BurhhSeme. 

Kent. 

688. 

Ceth^me. 

Kent. 

688. 

Cyngbseme. 

1212. 

C'rohh^me. 

"Worcestershire. 

507. 

DichSeme. 

Wiltshire. 

778. 

HinhSeme. 

Worcestershire. 

764. 

Middelb^me. 

Hampshire. 

648. 

Monninghdeme. 

Worcestershire. 

645 

LeofesbSeme. 

Kent. 

657. 

Miogb^me. 

Hampshire. 

638. 

PoUiEeme. 

Hampshire. 

642;  1136, 

Secg]i£eme. 

Worcestershire. 

764. 

TJppingb^me. 

Hampshire. 

590. 

Wicb^eme. 

Kent. 

657;  1038. 

Domh^me. 

Worcestershire. 

511. 

456 

APPENDIX  A. 

Beonotsetan. 

Worcestershire.  Cod. 

Dipl. 

No.  266. 

Bradsetan. 

"Worcestershire. 

289. 

BrMsetan. 

Gloucesterphire. 

274. 

Craegsetan. 

Kent. 

287. 

Crudsetan. 

Wiltshire. 

460. 

Grimsetan. 

Worcestershire. 

561. 

Incsetan. 

Worcestershire. 

511. 

Mosetan. 

Worcestershire. 

266. 

Wreocensetan. 

Worcestershire. 

277. 

MAKKS  INFERKED  FEOM  LOCAL  NAMES  IN 
ENGLAND. 

-Slbingas.  AhmgeT,  Surr.;  Abinghall,  (tZomc.  ;  Abington,  Cami. 

jEblingas.  Ablington,  Olouc;  Ablington,  Wilts. 

-iEcingas.  Oakington,  Carnh. 

.iEceringas.  Accrington,  Lane. ;  Eakring,  Notts. 

^clingas.  AckUngton,  Nthld. 

Aldingas.  Aldingbourn,  Sussx. ;  Aldingham,  Lane. ;  Alding- 
ton, Kent  and  Wore. 

Aldringas.  Aldringham,  Suff. ;  AldrLngton,  Sussx. 

jElcingas.  Alkington,  Glouc.  and  Salop. 

^Icringas.  Alkrington,  Lane. 

..^lingas.  AUington,  Devon,  Dors.,  Rants,  Kent,  Line, 
Wilts. 

^Imingas.  Almington,  Staff,  and  Warw. 

jSllmodingas.  Abnodington,  Svssx, 

-Mfingas.  Alphington,  Devon ;  Alvington,  Olouc,  Somers. 
and  Devon ;  Alvingham,  Line. 

.lElpingas.  Alpington,  Norf. 

jElwingas.  Alwington,  Devon. 

Angmeringas.  Angmering,  Sussx. 

Antingas,  Antingham,  Iforf. 

Ardingas.  Ardingly,  Sussx. ;  Ardington,  Berks. 


THE  MARK. 


457 


Arlingas.  Arlingham,  Glouc. ;  Arlington,  Devon,  Olouc.  and 

Susscc. 
Armingas.  Armingford,  Oanih. ;  ArminghaU,  Norf. 

Arringas.  Arrington,  Canib. 

ArSingas.  Arthington,  Yorlc. ;  Arthingwortli,  Nhamp. 

Artingas.  Artington,  Sussx. 

.^seingas.  Ashingdon,    Essex  ;  Asliington,  Sussx.,  Somers. 

and  Nthld. ;  Ashendon,  Bucks. 
jEsclingas.         Ashling,  Suss.r. 
.^Seringas.         Athrington,  Devon  and  Sussx. 
jEtingas.  Attington,  Oxf. 

-lEfingas.  Avington,  Berks,  and  Hants. 


Bsebingas. 

Bsedingas. 

Bseogingas. 

Baedlingas. 

Baloingas. 

Bffilingas. 

Baningas. 

Beorcingas. 

Beorlingas. 

Beormingas. 

Beorningas. 

Beorringas. 

Beortingas. 

Basingas. 

Bassingas. 


Bafingas. 

Bealingas. 

Bebingaa. 

Beeeringas. 

Beecingas. 


Babbingley,  Norf. ;  Babington,  Somers. 

Baddington,  Chesh. ;  Badingbam,  Suff. 

Badgingfcon,  Qlouc. ;  Baginton,  Warw. 

Badlingbam,  Canib. 

Balking,  Essex. 

BaUingdon,  Essex  ;  BaUingham,  Heref. 

Banningbam,  Norf. 

Barking,  Essex,  Suff.  and  Mddx. 

Barling,  Essex  ;  Barlings,  Lino. 

Barming,  Ketit ;  Birmingham,  Warw. 

Barningham,  Sicff.,  Yorlc.  and  Norf. 

BarringtoB,  Carab.,  Somers.,  Berks.,  Olouc. 

Bartington,  OhesJi. 

Basing,  Hants  ;  Basingstoke,  ihid. 

Bassingbourn,  Camh. ;  Bassingfleld,  Notts ;  Bas- 

singham.  Line.  ;  Bassingthorpe,  lAnc. ;  Bassing. 

ton,  Nthld. 
Bavington,  Nthld. 
Bealings,  Suff. 
Bebington,  Chesh. 
Beokering,  Line. 

Beckingham,   Essex,    Line,   Notts;    Beckington, 
Somers. 


458  APPENDIX  A. 

Beadingas.         Beddingham,  Sussx. ;  Beddington,  Sui-r.  ;  Beding- 

field,  Svff. ;  Bedingham,  Norf. 
Baedlingas.         Bedlington,  Drhm. 
Becingas.  Beecliing  Stoke,  Wilts. 

Bedingas.  Beeding,  Sussx. 

Bellingas.  Bellingdon,   Buelcs  ;  Bellinger,   Hants ;    BeUing- 

ham,  Nthld. 
Beltingas.  Belting,  Kent. 

Benningas.       'Benningbrough,    Yorh. ;    Benningholme,    Yorlc; 
Bennington,  Herts,  Line. ;  Benningwortli,  Line. 
Bensingas.         Bensington,  Oxf. 

Berringas.  Berrington,  Drhm..,  Glouc,  Salop,  Wore. 

Bessingas.  Bessingby,  York. ;  Bessingham,  JS[o7-f. 

Beofingas.  Bevington,  Warw. 

Biccingas.  Biekington,  Devon. 

BUlingaB.  Billing,    Nhamp. ;  Billinge,  Lane. ;   BiUingford, 

Norf. ;  BUlingbam,  Drhm.  ;  Billinghay,  Line. ; 
BilUngley,  York. ;  Billingsgate,  Mddx. ;  Bil- 
lingshurst,  Sussx. ;  BiUingside,  Drhm. ;  Billings- 
ley,  Salop  ;  Billington,  Bedf.,  Staff.,  Lane. 
Bilsingas.  Bikington,  Kent. 

Bingas.  Bing,  Suff. ;  Bingfleld,  Nthld. ;  Bingham,  Nhamp., 

Somers. ;  Bingley,  York. 
Binningas.         Binnington,  York. 
Bircingas.  BirchLngton,  Kent. 

Bridingas.  Birdingbury,  Warw. 

Birlingas.  BirUng,  Kent,  Nthld. ;  Birlingbam,  Wore. 

Biteringas.         Bittering,  Norf. 

Blaecingas.         BlatcMngton,  Suss.'e. ;  Blatchinworth,  Lane. 
Blsedingas.         Bleddington,  Olouc. 
Bleccingas.         Bletchingley,  Surr. ;  Bletcbington,  Oxf. 
Blielingas.         Blickling,  Norf. 
Bobbingas.         Bobbing,  Ke)it ;  Bobbington,  Salop,  Staff. ;  Bob- 

bingworth,  JEssex ;  Bobinger,  Essea;. 
Bocingas,  Bocking,  Essex,  Suff. 

Boddingas.         Boddington,  Glouc,  Nhamp. 


THE  MARK. 


459 


Bolingas. 

Bolingbroke,  Line. 

BoUingas. 

Bollington,  Chesh. 

Bondingas. 

Bondington,  Somers. 

Bonuingas. 

Bonnington,  Kent  and  Jfotts  ;  Boningale,  Salop  ; 

Boninghall,  Salop. 

Bosingas. 

Bossingham,  Kent ;  Bossington,  Hants.,  Somers. 

Boflngas. 

Bovingdon,  Rerts. 

Bradingas. 

Brading,  Hants. 

Brentingaa. 

Brantingham,  Torlc. ;  Breiitinglej',  Leie. 

Braheingas. 

Braughin,  Herts. 

Bressingas. 

Bressingham,  Norf. 

Bridlingas. 

Bridlington,  York. 

Brihtlingas. 

Brightling,  Sussx. ;  Brightlingsea,  Essex. 

Brimingas. 

Brimington,  Derby. 

Bringas. 

Brington,  Hunt,  and  Nhamp. ;  Bringhurst,  Letc. 

Briningas. 

Briningham,  Iforf. 

Brinningas. 

Brinnington,  ChesJi. 

Brislingas. 

Brislington,  Somers. 

Britingas. 

Brittenton,  Oxf. 

Bucingas. 

Buckingham,  Bucks. 

Budiugas. 

Buddington,  Sussx. 

Buloingas. 

Bulkington,  Warw.,  Wilts. 

Bullingas. 

Bullingdon,  Oxf. ;  Bullingham,  Heref. ;  Bulling- 

ton,  Hants  and  Line. 

Buntingas. 

Buntingford,  Herts. 

Burlingaa. 

Burlingham,  Norf. ;  Burlington,  Yorh. 

Burmingas. 

Burmington,  Warw. 

Burringas. 

Burringham,  Line.  ;  Burrington,  Devon,    Heref., 

Somers. 

Busliugas. 

Buslingthorpe,  Line. 

Byttingas. 

Butting  Hill,  Sussx. 

Caedingas.  Caddington,    Bedf.,    Herts ;   Keddington,   Line. 

Kedington,  Essex,  Suff. 
Callingas.  CaUington,  Cornw. 

Csegingas.  Keyingham,  Yorh. 


460 


APPENDIX  A. 


Cameringas.      Cameringham,  lAnc. ;  Cammertoii,  Cumh. 
Canningas.         Cannings,    Wilts ;    Canningfcon,    Somers. ;    Ken- 

ninghall,    Norf. ;  Kennington,    Berhs.,   Kent, 

Surr. 

_.      ^.        ,  !■  Cardington,  Bedf.,  Salop  ;  Cardinham,  Gornw. 


Cearlingal. 
Cerringas. 

Cersington. 

Csessingas. 

Ceadlingas. 

Cealfingas. 

Ceandlingas. 

Ceadingas. 

Cyllingas. 


Ceassingas. 
Cifingas. 
Cyrclingas. 
Cidingas. 

Cirmingas. 
Ciltingas. 
Cemesingas. 
Cypiugas. 

Cenesingas. 

Ceopingas. 

Cetringas. 

Claefringas. 

Cyrtlingas. 

Climpingas. 

Cyslingas. 


Carlingcot,  Somers.  ;  Carlinghow,  York. 
Carrington,  Chesh.,  Line,  Notts ;  Charing,  Kent ; 

Cherrington,  Salop,  Wilts. 
Carsington,  Derby. 
Cassington,  Oxf. 
Chaddlington,  0.),/. 

Chalvington,  Sussa;.  ;  Kilvington,  YorJc. 
Chandlings,  Berhs. 
Cheddington,  Buclcs,  Dors. 
Chellington,   Bedf.;    ChiUingford,   Staff.;   Chil- 

lingham,  NiKld. ;  CMUington,  Devon,  Somers. ; 

Kelling,  Norf. ;  Kellingley,  Tori-. ;  Kellington, 

Yorh. 
Chessington,  Surr. ;  Kessingland,  Suff. 
Chevington,  Suff.,  Nthld. 
Kirklington,  Notts,  Yorlc. 
Chiddingfold,  Surr. ;  Chiddingly,   Sv^sx. ;  Chid- 

dingstone,  Kent ;  Kiddington,  Oxf. 
Kirmington,  Line. 
Chiltington,  Sussx. 
Kemsing,  Kent. 
Chipping,    Herts,    Lane,     Glouc,   Berlcs.,    Oxf., 

Essex,  NJiamp..  Bucks. 
Kensington,  Mddx. 
Choppington,  Drhm. 

Kettering,  Nhamp. ;  Ketteringham,  Norf. 
Clavering,  Essex,  Norf. 
Kirtling,  Oamb. ;   Kirtlington,  Oxf. 
Climping,  Sussx. 
Kislingbury,  Nhamp. 


THE  MARK. 


461 


Coceringas. 

Cookerington,  Line. 

Cnudlingas. 

KnedUngton,  Yorlc. 

Cooingas. 

Cocking,  Sussx. ;  Oocldngton,  Devon. 

Codingas. 

Coddington,   Ohesh.,  Heref.,   Notts ;  Coddenham, 

Suff. 

Codringas. 

Codrington,  Ohuc. 

Collingas. 

Colliiigbourne,  Wilts;  CoUmgham,  Notts,  York,; 

Collington,  Heref. ;   Collingtree,  Nhamp. 

Cnossingas. 

Knosaington,  Leic. 

Cnottingas. 

Knotting,  Bedf. ;  Knottingley,  York. 

Ciilingas. 

Cooling,  Kent ;  Cowling,  Suff.,  Yorh. 

Copingas. 

Copping-Syke,  Line.  ;  Coppingford,  Hunt. 

Coringas, 

Corringham,  Essex,  Line. 

Cosingas, 

Oossington,  Leic,  Somers. 

Cotingas. 

Cottingham,  Nhamp.,  York. ;  Cottingley,  York. ; 

Cottingwith,  York. 

Cofingas. 

Covington,  Hunt. 

Cramlingas. 

Cramlington,  Nthld. 

Creotingas. 

Greeting,  Suff. 

Creasingas. 

Cressing,  Essex ;  Cresaingham,  Norf. 

Cridlingas. 

Cridling-Stubba,  York. 

Cniogingas. 

Crudgington,  Salop. 

Cubingas. 

Cubbington,  Warw. 

Cublingas. 

Cublington,  Bucks. 

Cwasdringas. 

Quadring,  Line. 

Cyoelingaa. 

Cuoklington,  Somers. 

Cwaeiingas. 

Quarrington,  Drhm.,  Line. 

Cydingaa. 

Cuddington,  Bucks,  Chesh.,  Swr, 

Cydlingas. 

Kidlington,  Oxf. 

CuUiiigaa. 

CuUingworth,  York. 

Cweningas. 

Quenington,  Olouc. 

Culmingaa. 

Culmington,  Salop  ;  Kilmington,  Devon,  Somers. 

Cylingas. 

Kmingbeck,  York. ;  KillingbaU,  York. ;  KiUing- 

holm,  Line.  ;  Killingworth,  Nthld. 

Dsedlingas. 

Dadlington,  Leic. 

462 

APPENDIX  A. 

Dseglingas. 

Daglingwortli,  Qloue. 

Dsellingas. 

DaUing,   Norf. ;  Dallinghoo,    Suff. ;  Dallington, 

Nhamp.,  Sussx. 

Deorlingas. 

DarliBgseott,  Wore. ;  Darlington,  Drhm. 

Deorringas. 

Darrington,  York. 

Dartingas. 

Daxtington,  Devon. 

Dsefingas.' 

Davington,  Kent. 

Deoplingas. 

Debtling,  Kent. 

Deddingas. 

Deddington,  Oxf. 

Denningas. 

Dennington,  Suff. 

Deorsingas. 

Dersingham,  Norf. ;  Dorsington,  Glouc,  Warw. 

Dicringas. 

Dickering,  York. 

Diddingas. 

Diddington,  Hunt. 

Didlbgas. 

Didling,  Sussx. ;  Didlington,  Dors,,  Norf. 

Dillingas. 

DLllington,  Norf. 

Bimlingas. 

Dimlington,  Yorlc. 

Dinningas. 

Dinnington,  Nthld.,  Somers.,  YorJc. 

Dintingas. 

Dinting,  Derby. 

Dissingas. 

Dissington,  Nthld. 

Distingas. 

Distington,  Cumb. 

Dicelingas. 

Ditchling,  Sussx. 

Docingas. 

Docking,  Norf. 

Dodingas. 

Doddinghurst,  Essex ;  Doddington,  Camb.,  Chesh., 

Kent,   Line,   Nthld.,   Nhamp. ;    Doddingtree, 

Wore. ;  Dodington,  Glouc,  Salop,  Somers. 

Doningas. 

Donington,   Line,   Leic,    Salop ;     Donnington, 

Berks.,  Glouc,  Eeref,  Leic,  Salop,  Sussx. 

Deorcingas. 

Dorking,  Surr. 

DormiBgas. 

Dormington,  Heref. 

Dorringas. 

Dorrington,  Line,  Salop. 

Drihlmgas. 

Drighlington,  York. 

Dycingas. 

Duckington,  Chesh. ;  Dykings,  Line. 

Dyclingas. 

Duckliagton,  Oxf. 

Dylingas. 

Dullingliam,  Camb. 

DyniBgas. 

Dnnningley,  York. ;  Dunnington,  Warw.,  York.; 

Dunning-with,  Suff. 

Dyringas. 


THE  MARK. 
Durringbon,  Sussa;.,  Wilts. 


463 


Ealingas. 

Ealing,  Mddx. ;  Eling,  Hants. 

Eardingas. 

Eardington,  Salop  ;  Erdington,  Warw. 

Esingas. 

Eashing,  Surr. ;  Easington,  Buclcs,  Drhm.,  Olouc, 

Nthld.,  Oxf.,  York. ;  Easingwold,  Yorh. 

Eastingas. 

Eastmgton,  Dors.,  Glouo.,  Wore. 

Eastlingas. 

Eastling,  Kent. 

Eastringas. 

Eastrington,  York. 

Eberingas. 

Ebrington,  Glove. 

Eogingas. 

Eokington,    Derby. ,    Wore. ;    Eggington,    Bedf. ; 

Etchingham,  Sussx. 

Edingas. 

Edingale,  Staff. ;  Edingley,  Notts  ;  Edingthorpe, 

Worf. ;  Edington,  Berks.,  Nthld.,  Somers.,  Wilts.; 

Edingworth,  Somers. 

Eadlingas. 

Edlingham,  Nthld. ;  Edlington,  Line,  York. 

Eafingas. 

EflBingham,  Snrr. 

Ecglingas. 

Eglingham,  Nthld. 

Elcingas. 

Elkington,  Nhamp.,  Line. 

Elringas. 

EUerington,  Nthld. 

EUingas. 

Ellmgham,    Hants,    Norf.,  Nthld. ;    Ellingstriiig, 

York.  ;  Ellington,  Hunt,  Kent,  Nthld.,  York. 

Elmingas. 

Elmington,  Nhamp. 

Elsingas. 

Elaing,  Norf. 

Eltringas. 

Eltringham,  Nthld. 

Elfingas. 

Elvington,  York. 

Empingas. 

Empingham,  Butl. 

Eppiugas. 

Epping,  Essex. 

Earmingas. 

Ermington,  Devon. 

Eorpingas. 

Erpingliam,  Norf. 

Eorringas. 

Erringden,  York. 

Essingas. 

Essington,  Staff. 

Ettingas. 

Ettinghall,  Staff. 

Eoferingas. 

Everingliam,  York. 

Efingas. 

Evingar,  Eanty,  Evington,  fflouc,  Leic. 

Escningas. 

Exning,  Suff. 

464 


APPENDIX  A. 


Fealcingas.  Falkingham,  Line. ;  Felkingtoii,  Drhm. 

Fealdingas.  Paldingworth,  Line. ;  Pawdington,  Yorlc. 

Fearingas.  Faringdon,   Devon;     Farringdon,   Dors.,    Hants, 

Berks.,  Somers. ;  Farrington,  Lane.,  Somers. 

Feorlingas.  Farlington,  Hants,  Torh. 

Feormingas.  Farmington,  Oloue. 

Fearningas.  Farningliam,  Kent. 

Felmingas.  Felmmgham,  Norf. 

Ferringas.  Ferring,  Sussx. 

Fiddingas.  Fiddington,  Gloue.,  Somers.,  Wilts. 

FiUingas.  FiUingham,  Line. 

Finoingas.  Finchingfield,  Essex'. 

Fingringas.  Fingriiiglioe,  Essex. 

Finningas.  Finningliam,   Suff. ;    Finningley,  Notts,  York.  ; 

Vennington,  Salop. 

Fitlingas.  Fitling,  YorJc. 

Fleccingas.  Fletching,  Sussx. 

Fobingas.  Fobbing,  Essex. 

Folcingas.  Folkingham,  Line. ;  Folkington,  Siissx. 

Fordingas.  Fordingbridge,  Hants ;  Fordington,  Dors.,  Line. 

FoSeringas.  Fotberingay,  Nhamp. 

Framingas.  Framingham,  Norf.  ;  Fremington,  Devon,  Yorlc. 

Framlmgas.  Framlingham,  Suff. ;  Framlington,  Nthld. 

Frescingas.  Fressingfield,  Suff. 

Fringas.  Pring,  Norf. ;  Fringford,  Oxf. 

Frodingas.  Frodingham,  Line,  Yorlc. 

Funtingas.  Fimtington,  Sussx. 

Fylingas.  Fylingdales,  Yorlc. ;  Fylingthorpe,  YorJc. 


Gaegingas.  Gagingwell,  Oxf. ;  Ginge,  Berks. 

Galmingas.  Galmington,  Somers. 

Gamelingas.  Gamlingay,  Camh. ;  Gembling,  York. 

Garlingas.  Garlinge,  Kent. 

Gsersingas.  Garsington,  Oxf. ;  Grassington,  York. ;  Gressing- 

ham.  Lane. ;  Gressenhall,  Norf. 

Gealdingas.  Yalding,  Kent ;   Yielding,  Bedf. 


THE  MARK. 


465 


Geddingas.  Gedding,  Suff. ;  Geddingtou,  Nhamp. ;   Yeading, 

Mddx. ;  Teddingham,  Yorlc. 


Gearlingas. 

Yarlington,  Somers. 

Gaedlingas. 

Gedling,  Notts. 

Gearingas. 

Yarrington,  Oxf. 

6estinga3. 

Gestingthorpe,  Essex. 

Geofoningas. 

Yeavening,  Nthld. 

Giddingas. 

Gidding,  Hunt. 

Gedtingaa. 

Yettington,  Devon. 

Gildingas. 

Gildingwells,  Yorh. 

Gillingas. 

Gilling,  Yorh. ;  Gillingham,  Dors.,  Kent,  Norf.  ; 

Yelling,  Hunt. 

Gimingas. 

Gimingham,  Norf.  ;  Gimmingbrook,  Kent. 

Gipingas. 

Gipping,  Suff. 

Gislingas. 

Gislingham,  Suff. 

Gitlingas. 

Yetlington,  Nthld. 

Glaestingas. 

Glastonbury,  Somers. 

Glseferiugaa. 

Glevering,  Suff. 

Goddingas. 

Goddington,  0.vf. 

Goldingas. 

Golding  Stoke,  Leic. ;  Goldings,  8urr. ;  Golding- 

ton,  Bedf.,  Bucks. 

Garingas. 

Goring,  Oxf.,  Sxff. 

GoSringas. 

Gotherington,  Olouc. 

Grtegingas. 

Grayingham,  Line. 

Gystlingas. 

Guestling,  Sussx. 

Gytingas. 

Guyting,  Glove. 

Haecingas. 

Hackington,  Kent. 

Hsedingas. 

Haddington,  Line. 

Hallingas. 

Hallingbury,  Essex ;  Hallington,  Line.,  Nthld. 

Haningas. 

Hanningfield,  Essex ;  Hannington,  Hants,  Nhamp., 

Wilts. 

Haepingas. 

Happing,  Norf. 

Heardingas. 

Hardingbam,  Norf. ;  Hardington,  Somers. ;  Har- 

dingstone,  Nhamp.  ;  Harden,    York. ;   Harden- 

dale,  Wmld. ;  Hardenhuish,  Wilts. 

VOL.   I. 

2  H 

466 


APPENDIX  A. 


Herelingas. 
Hearingas. 

Heortingas. 

Heortlingas. 

Heorfingas. 

Hseslingas. 

Hsesssingas. 
Haestingas. 

Haeferingas. 

Hafocingas. 
Hseglingas. 
Heafodingas. 

Healingas. 
Haeoingas. 

Hellingas. 

Helmingas. 

Helpringas. 

Helsingas. 

Hemlingas. 

Hemingas. 


Hanesingas. 
Hcorringas. 


Heofingaa. 
Hicelingas. 


Harling,  Norf. ;  Harlington,  Bedf.,  Mcldm.,  York. 
Harrington,   Camh.,  Line,   Nhamp. ;    Harring- 

worth,  Nhamp. 
Harting,   Siissx.  ;    Hartington,    Derby.,  Nthld. ; 

Hertingfordbury,  Herts. 
Hartlington,  Yorh. 
Harvington,  Wore. 
Haslingden,  Lane. ;  Haslingfield,  Camh. ;  Hasling- 

ton,  Uhesh. ;  Heslington,  Yorh. 
Hassingham,  Norf. 
'Kaatm^,Siissx.,Ber'ks,  Warw., Nhamp. •,'S.a&\xa^- 

I'eyt,  Kent ;  Hastingwood,  Essex. 
Havering,  Essex ;  Haveringham,  Suff. ;  Havering- 

land,  Norf. 
Hawkinge,  Kent. 

Hawling,  Olouc. ;  Hayling,  Hants. 
Headingley,  Yorh, ;  Headington,  ^xf. ;  Hedding- 

ton,  Wilts  ;  Hedingham,  Essex. 
Healing,  Line. 
Heckingham,  Norf. ;  Heckingfcon,  Line. ;  Heigh- 

ington,  Drhm,.,  Line. 
Hellinghill,  Nthld. ;  Hellingly,  Sitssx. 
Helmingham,  Suff. ;  Helmington,  Drhm. 
Helprington,  Line. 
Helsington,  Wmld. 
Hembliligton,  Norf. ;  Hemlingford,  Warw.iKem- 

lington,  Yorh.,  Drhm. 
Hemingbrough,  Yorh.  ;  Hemingby,  Line. ;  He- 

mingfield,    Yorh.  ;    Hemingford,   Hunt. ;  He- 

mingstone, /S^it^. ;  Hemington,  Nhamp.,  Somer$. 
Hensingham,  Cumh. ;  Hensington,  Oxf. 
Herring,  Dors. ;  Herringby,  Norf. ;  Herringfleet, 

/SfM^.;Herringstone,  Dors.;  Heiiingswel],  Suff.; 

Herringtborpe,  Yorh. ;  Herrington,  Drhm. 
Hevingham,  Norf. 
Hiokling,  No^f.,  Notts. 


THE  MARK. 


467 


Hillingas. 

Hillingdon,  Mddx. ;  HilUngton,  Norf. 

Hindringas. 

Hindringliam,  Norf. 

Hooringas. 

Hockering,  Norf. 

Hodingas. 

Hoddington,  Hants. 

Holdingas. 

Holdingliain,  Lino. 

Holingas. 

Hollingbourn,   Kent ;  HoUingdon,   Bucks  ;  Hol- 

'\in^^,Nthld. ;  Hollingfcoii,i)«r5.,*Sfeijf.,  Sussx.; 

HoUingworth,  Chesh. 

Homingas. 

Homington,  Wilts. 

Honingas. 

Honing,  Norf.  •  Honingham,  Norf. ;  Honington, 

Line.,  Suff.,  Warw. 

Horblingas. 

Horbling,  Line. 

Homingas. 

Homing,  Norf. ;  Horninghold,   Leia. ;  Horning- 

low.  Staff. ;  Horningsea,  Gamb. ;  Horningsham, 

Wilts ;    Horningsheath,     Suff. ;    Hornitfgtoft 

Norf 

Horingas. 

Horrington,  Somers. 

Horsingas. 

Horsington,  Line.,  Somers. 

Hoferingas. 

Hoveringham,  Notts. 

Hofingas. 

Hovingham,  TorTc, 

Hucingas,    or  "i  „    ^  . 

„    .              ■  Huokmg,  Kent. 
Hooingas.    J 

Hudingas. 

Huddington,  Wore. 

Huningas,  oi 
Hundingas. 

I  Hunningham,  Warw. ;  Hunnington,  Salo}j. 

Hunsingas. 

Hunsingore,  Yorh. 

Hyrstingas. 

Hurstingstone,  Hunt. 

Icelingas. 

Icklingham,  Suff. 

niingas. 

Illington,  Norf.  ;  Hlingworth,  York. 

Ilmingas. 

Hmirngton,  Glouc.,  Warw. 

Hsingas. 

Hsington,  Devon.,  Dors. 

Immiugas. 

Immingham,  Line. 

Impingaa. 

Impington,  Camb. 

Ipingas. 

Iping,  Sussx. 

Irmingas. 

Irmingland,  Norf. 

2  h2 


468 

APPENDIX  A. 

IrSingas. 

Irthington,  Oumb. 

IrSlingas. 

Irthliiigborough,  Nhamp. 

Islingas. 

Islington,  Norf.,  Mddx. 

Issingas. 

Issington,  Hants. 

Icoingas. 

ItchingsweU,  Hants  ;  Itohington,  Glouc,  Warw. 

Iteringas. 

Itteringham,  Norf. 

Ifingas. 

Ivinghoe,    Bucks;  Ivington,  Heref.;    Jevington, 

Sassx. 

Lseoingag. 

Laokington,  Soniers. ;  Latohingdon,  Essex. 

Larlingas. 

Larling,  Morf. 

Leortingas. 

Lartington,  Yorh. 

Leamingas. 

Leamington,  Warw. ;  Leeming,  York. ;  Leming- 

ton,  Glouc,  Nthld. 

Leasingas. 

Leasingham,  Line.  ;  Lissington,  lAnc. 

Leafeningas. 

Leavening,  Yorh. 

Leafingas. 

Leavington,  Yorlc. ;  Levington,  Suff. 

Lsepingas. 

Leppington,  Yorh. 

LeSringas. 

Letheringham,  Suff. ;  Letheringsett,  Norf. 

Lseferingas. 

Leverington,  Camb. 

Lexingas. 

Lexington,  Notts. 

Lidingas. 

Liddington,  Rwtl.,  Wilts. 

Lidlingas. 

Lidlington,  Bedf. 

Lidesingas. 

Lidsing,  Kent. 

Lillingas. 

Lillings,  Yorlc. ;  Lillingstone,  Bucks ;  Lillington, 

Dors.,  Oxf.,  Warw. 

Limingas. 

Limington,  Somers. ;  Lyminge,  Kent ;  Lymington, 

Hants. 

Lingas. 

Lings,  Yorh. ;  Lingbob,   Yorh. ;  Lingen,  Eeref. ; 

Lingfield,  Surr. ;  Lingham,    Chesh. ;  Lingwell 

Gate,  Yorh. ;  Lingwood,  Norf.  ;  Lyng,  Norf. 

Lytlingas. 

Littlington,  Camb.,  Sussx. 

Locingas. 

Locking,  Somers. ;  Lockinge,  Berks. ;  Locldngton, 

Leic,  Yorh. 

Lodingas. 

Loddington,  Kent,  Leic,  Nhamp. 

Loningas. 

Loningborough,  Kent, 

THE  MAEK. 


463 


Lopingas. 

Loppington,  Salop. 

Loflngas. 

Lovington,  Somers. 

Lucingas. 

Luckington,  Somers.,  Wilts. 

Ludingas. 

Luddington,  Line,  Warw.,  Hunt,  Nhamp. 

Lullingas. 

Lullingfield,  Salop. ;  Lullingstane,  Kent ;  LuUing- 

stone,  Kent ;  Lullington,  Derh.,  Somers.,  Sussx. 

Maedingas. 

Maddington,  Wilts  ;  Madingley,  Camb. 

Mallingas. 

Mailing,  Kent,  Sussx. 

Manningas. 

Manningford,  Wilts  ;  MamiiDgham,  Yorh. ;  Man- 

nington,   Dors.,  Norf. ;    Manningtree,   Essex  ■ 

Monnington,  Heref. 

MyrcingaB. 

Marohington,  Staff.  ■  Markington,  Yorh.;  Mark- 

ingfield,  Yorh. 

Mserlingas. 

Marlingford,  Norf. 

Meeringas,  or 

■  1  Marrington,  Salop. ;  Mering,  Notts.;  Merrington 
Drhm.,  Salop. 

MjTgings? 

Maessmgas. 

Massingham,  Norf.;   Messing,   Essex;  Messing 

ham.  Line. 

MsecciDgas. 

Matching,  Essex. 

MaBtingas. 

Mattingley,  Hants  ;  Mettingham,  Suff. 

MEegdlingas. 

Maudling,  Sussx. 

Mecingas. 

Meeching,  Sussx. 

Mellingas. 

Melling,  Lane. 

MeSringas. 

Metheringham,  Line. 

Millingas. 

MUlingfcoB,  Ohesh.,  Yorh. 

Mintingas. 

Minting,  Line. 

MoUingaa. 

MoUington,  Ohesh.,  Oxf.,  Warw. 

Mottingas. 

Mottingham,  Kent. 

Mycgingas. 

Mucking,  Essex. 

Nsecingas'. 

Nackington,  Kent ;  Nedging,  Snff. 

Nsessingas. 

Nassington,  Nhamp. ;  Nazeiug,  Essex. 

Nydingas. 

Needingworth,  Hunt. 

'  These  may  properly  haye  commenced  with  an  H,  thus  Hnsecingas,  Hnut- 
tingas.     Similarly  Hnutscillingas,  now  Nutshalling  or  Nursling  in  Hants. 


470 

APPENDIX  A. 

Niwingas. 

Newington,    Kent,   Notts,    Oxf.,    York.,    Qlouc., 

Surr.,  Mddx. 

NorSingas. 

Northington,  Hants. 

Nottingas'. 

Notfcing,  Bedf. ;  Nottington,  Dors. ;  Nottingham, 

Notts,  Berks. 

Oddingas. 

Oddingley,  Wore. ;  Oddington,  Qlouc.,  Oxf. 

Oldingas. 

Oldington,  Salop. 

Orlingas. 

Orlingbury,  Nhamp. 

Orpedingas. 

Orpington,  Kent. 

Osmingas. 

Osmington,  Dors. 

Ossingas. 

Ossington,  Notts. 

Oteringas. 

Otterington,  York. ;  Ottringham,  York. 

Ofingas. 

Oving,  Bucks,  Sussx. ;  Ovingdean,  Su^sx. ;  Oving- 

ham,  York.,  Nthld. ;  Ovington,  Essex,  Hants, 

Norf.,  Nthld.,  York. 

Paeccingas. 

Packington,  Derh.,  Leic,  Staff.,   Warw. ;  Patch- 

ing, Sitssx. 

Psedingas. 

Paddington,  Mddx.  (?  Padan  tun.) 

Paellingas. 

Palling,  Norf. ;  Pallingham,  Sussx. ;  PalUngton, 

Dors. 

Paemingas. 

Pamington,  Cflouc. 

Peartingas. 

Partington,  ChesJt. 

Paetringas. 

Patrington,  York. 

Peetingas. 

Pattingham,  Salop.,  Staff. 

Paefingas. 

Pavingham,  Bedf. ;  Pevington,  Kent. 

Petlingas. 

Peatling,  Leic. 

Paedlingas. 

Pedling,  Kent. 

Penningas. 

Pennington,  Hants,  Lane. 

Piceringas. 

Pickering,  York. 

Pidingas. 

Piddinghoe,  Sussx. ;  Piddington,  Nhuftvp.,  Oxf. 

Pilcingas. 

Pilkington,  Lane. 

Pillingas. 

Pilling,  Latic. 

'  See  note,  p.  469. 


THK  MARK. 

Pitingas. 

Pittington,  Drhm. 

Poclingas. 

Pooklington,  York. 

Podingas. 

Poddington,  Bedf. ;  Podington,  Dors. 

Puntingas. 

Pointington,  Somers. 

Polingas. 

Poling,  Sussx. ;  Pollington,  TorJc. 

Poringas. 

Pormgland,  Norf. 

Poroingas. 

Porkington,  Salop. 

Portingas. 

Portington,  Torh. 

Postlingas. 

Postling,  Kent. 

Potingas. 

Poting,  York. 

Pucingas. 

Puckington,  Somers. 

Puningas. 

Poynings,  Sussx. 

Pydingas. 

Puddington,  Bedf.,  Chesh.,  Devon. 

471 


Esedingas.  Kaddington,  Somers. ;  Reading,  Berks  ;  Reading- 
street,  Kent. 

Rsetlingae.  Eatlinghope,  Salop. 

Rsefiiingas^.  Eaveningham,  Norf. 

Esedlingas^  Redlingfield,  Suff. 

Renningas.  Rennington,  Nihld. 

Rioingas.  Rickinghall,  Suff. 

Riclingas'.  Riokling,  Essex. 

Ridingas.  Riddinge,  Derb. ;  Riding,  Nthld. 

Ridlingas.  Ridlington,  Norf.,  Rutl. 

RiUingas.  Rillington,  York. 

Rimmingas.  Rimmington,  York. 

Riplingas'.  Riplingliam,  York. ;  Riplington,  Hants,  Nthld. 

Ripingas'.  Rippingale,  Line. 

Risingas'.  Rising,  Norf. ;  Rissington,  Qlouc, 

Riflngas.  Rivington,  Lane. 

Rocingas\  Rockingham,  Nhamp. 


'  All  these  words  commencing  with  an  E  may  have  originally  had  an  H, 
in  which  case  we  should  have  had  these  formations ;  Hrajfningas,  Hr^^lingas, 
Hrycglingas,  Hreoplingas,  Hre6pingas,  Hrisingas,  Hrioingas,  Hriringaa, 
Hre&wingas,  Hrj'cingas,  Hreodingas,  Hryscingas. 


472 


APPENDIX  A. 


Eodingas.  Eoddington,  Salop. ;  Eoding,  Essex. 

Eollirlgas.  Eollington,  Dors. 

Eoringas.  Eorrington,  Salop. 

Eossingas.  Eossington,  YorJc. 

Eotingaa.  Eottingdean,  Sussx. ;  Eottington,  Cumb. 

Eowingas^  Eowington,  Wariv. 

Euoingas'.  Euokinge,  Kent. 

Eudingas'.  Euddington,  Notts. 

Euningas.       ,    Eunningtoii,  Somers. 

Euscingas'.  Euskington,  Line. 

Eustingas,  Eustington,  Sussx. 


Ssedingas. 

S«linga8. 

Sealftngas, 

Sandingas. 

Seaxlingas. 

Scealingas, 

Scearningas. 

Scearingas,  or 
Seringas. 

ScearSingas. 

Scrsegingas. 

Soreadingas. 

Seafingas. 

Secgingas. 

SeaSingas. 

Syllingas. 

Seamingas. 

Sempringas. 

Setringas. 

Syfingas. 

Sceabingas. 


Saddington,  Leic. 

Saling,  Essex. 

Salvington,  Sussx. 

Sandriagham,  Norf. 

Saxlingham,  Norf. 

Scaling-dam,  Yorh. 

Seaming,  Norf. 

Searrington,  Notts;  Sharrington,  Norf;  Sheering, 

Essex ;  Sheringford,  Norf. ;  Sherringham,  Norf. ; 

Sherrington,  Bucks,  Wilts. 
Soarthingwell,  TorJc. 
Sorayingham,  York.  ■'• 

Soredington,  Line. 
Seavington,  Somers.  . 
Seckington,  Warw. 
Seething,  Norf. 
Selling,  Kent;  SeUinge,  Kent. 
Semington,  Wilts. 
Sempringham,  Line. 
Settrington,  Yorh. 
Sevington,  Kent. 
Shabbington,  BiicJcs. 


'  See  note  in  the  preceding  page. 


THE  MARK. 


473 


Sceadingas.        Shadingfield,  Suff. 

Soeaflngas.  Shavington,    Ghesh. ;   Shevington,   Lane. ;    Skef- 

fington,  Leic. 

Sceaningas.         Shenington,  Olouc. 

Soyllingas.  Shilling-Okeford,     Dors.  ;     Shillingford,    Berks, 

Oxf.,  Devon. ;  Shillingstone,  Dors. ;  Shilling- 
thorpe.  Lino. ;  Sliillington,  Bedf. ;  Skelling- 
thorpe,  Line.  ;  Skillington,  Line. 

Soylflngas.  Shilvington,  Dors.,  Nthld. 

Scymplingas.      Shimpling,  Norf.,  Suff. 

Soytlingas.  Shitlington,  Bedf.,  Nthld.,  York. 

Scolingas.  Sliding,  Hants. 

Scyrdingaa.         Shurdington,  Olouc. 

Scytingaa.  Shuttington,  Warm. 

Soylingas.  Sioklinghall,  York. 

Sidingas.  Siddington,  Glouc. 

Silflngas.  Silvington,  Salop. 

Sinningas.  Sinnington,  YorJc. 

Sittingas.  Sittingbourne,  Kent. 

Sceadingas.        Skeokling,  York. 

Soeaflingas.         Skeffling,  York. 

Scyldingas.         Skelding,  York. 

Soyrlingas.  Skirlington,  York. 

Sleaningas.         Sleningford,  York. 

Snoringas.  Snoring,  Norf. 

Somtingas.  Sompting,  Sussx. 

Sunningas.  Sonning,  Berks,  Oxf.  ;  Sunninghill,  Berks  ;  Sun- 

ningwell,  Berks. 

SuSingas.  Southington,  Hants. 

Spaldingas.         Spalding,  Line. ;  Spaldington,  York. 

Specingas.  Speckington,  Somers. 

Spyringas.  Spirringate,  Gloue. 

Spraettingas.        Spratting- street,  Kent. 

Sprydlingas.       Spridlington,  Line. 

Steallingas.         Stalling-busk,    York.  ;    Stallingboroxigh,    Line.  ; 
Stallington,  Staff. 


474 

APPENDIX  A. 

StSeningas. 

Stanningfleld,  Suff. ;  Stanningtall,  Norf. ;  Stan- 

ningley,  Torh. ;  Stannington,   Nihld.,   York.  ; 

Steyning,  Susscc. 

Steorlingas. 

Starling,  Lane. 

Stebbingas. 

Stebbing,  Essex;  Stibbington,  Runt. 

Steapingas. 

Steeping,  Line. ;  Steppingley,  Bedf. 

Stellingas. 

Stalling,  Kent,  Nthld. ;  Stillingfleet,  Torh. ;  Stil- 

lington,  Drhm.,  Torlc. 

Steflngas. 

Stevington,  Bedf. 

Stocingas. 

Stocking,  Herts ;  Stocl?ingford,  Warw. ;  Stoking- 

ham,  Devon. 

Stomingas. 

Storningley,  Yorlc. 

Storringas. 

Storrington,  Sussx. 

Stutingas. 

Stouting,  Kent. 

Strellingas. 

Strellington,  Sussx. 

Stubingas. 

Stubbington,  Rants. 

Sulingas. 

Sullington,  Sussx. 

Surlingas. 

Surlingham,  Norf. 

Swaningas. 

Swannington,  Leic,  Norf. 

Sweorlingas. 

Swarling,  Kent  (?  Sweordhlincas). 

SweSelingas. 

Swathling,  Rants. 

Swefelingas. 

Sweffling,  S-uff. 

Swillingas. 

SwUHngton,  TorJc. 

S)'dlingas. 

Sydling,  Dors. 

Taedingas.  Taddington,  Glouc.,  Derby. ;  Teddington,  Mddx., 

Wore. ;  Tiddington,  Oxf,  Warw. 

Taelingas.  Tallington,  Line. 

Tseningaa.  Tannington,  Suff. 

Teorringas.  Tarring,  Sussx. ;  Tarrington,  Reref. ;  Terriugton, 
Norf,  York.. ;  Torrington,  Devon.,  Line. 

Tsetingas.  Tattingstone,  Suff. 

Tendringas.        Tendring,  Essex. 

TeorKngas.         Terling,  Essex. 

Degningas.         Thanington,  Kent. 

Deddingas.         Thedingwortb,  Leic,  Nhamp. 


THE  MARK.                                       47J 

Docingas. 

Thockington,  Mhld. 

"'^    .             \  Thorington,  Suff. ;  Thorrington,  Essex. 

Dorningas. 

Thornington,  Nihld. 

Drecgingas. 

Threokinghani,  Lino. 

Dredlingas. 

Thredling,  Suff. 

Dristlingas. 

Trislington,  Di-hm. 

Dryscingas. 

Thrussington,  Leic. 

Dumingas. 

Thurning,  Hunt.,  Norf.,  Nhamp. 

Dwingas. 

Thwing,  York. 

Tibbiiigas. 

Tibbington,  Staff. 

Tidmingas. 

Tidmington,  Wore. 

Tilingas. 

TiUingbam,  Essex;  TiHingtoa,  Heref.,  Staff.,  Sussx. 

Tissingas. 

Tissington,  Derhy. 

Titliiigas. 

Titlington,  Nthld. 

Teofingas. 

Tivington,  Somers. 

Tocingas. 

Tockington,  Olouc. 

Todingas. 

Toddington,  Bedf.,  Glow. 

Toltingas. 

Toltingtrough,  Kent. 

Totingas. 

Tooting,  Surr. ;  Tottington,  Lane,  Norf. 

Torcingas. 

Torkington,  Chesh. 

Tortingas. 

Tortington,  Sussx. 

Trimingas. 

Trimmgham,  Norf. 

Tringas. 

Tring,  Herts. 

Tritlingas. 

Tritlington,  Nthld. 

Trumpingas. 

Trumpington,  Oamb. 

Tucingas. 

Tucking  Mills,  Somers. ;  Tuckington,  Hants. 

Tuscingas. 

Tusbingbam,  Ohesh. 

Tuttingas. 

Tuttington,  Norf. 

Twiningas. 

Twining,  Glouc. 

Twicgingas. 

Twitobing,  Devon. 

Tyrringas. 

Tyrringham,  Bucks. 

TySeringas. 

Tytberington,  Chesh.,  Olouc,  Wilts. 

Ucingas. 


Uckington,  Olouc.,  Salop. 
Ufflngton,  Berks,  Line,  Salop. 


476 


APPENDIX  A. 


Ulingas.  Ullingswick,  Heref. 

Ultingas.  Ulting,  Essex. 

Upingas.  Uppingham,  Butl. ;  Uppington,  Salop. 


Wadingas. 

Wseceringas. 

Wealdingas. 

Wealdringas. 

Wealcringas. 

Wealcingas. 

Wealingas. 


Wselsingas. 

Wseplingas'. 

Wseppingas'. 

Wearblingas^ 

Weardingas. 

Wearlingas. 

"Wearmingas. 

Wearnmgas. 
WsBiingas. 

Weartingas. 
Wsesingas. 


Wsetringas. 


Waddingham,  Line. ;  Waddington,  Line.,  York. ; 

Waddingworth,  Line. ;  Weddington,  Warw. 
Wakering,  Essex. 

Waldingfield,  Suff. ;  "Woldingham,  Surr. 
Waldringfleld,  Suff. 
Walkeringham,  Notts. 
"Walkingham,  York. ;  "Walkington,  York. 
Wallingfen,    York.  ;    Wallingford,  Berks ;  Wal- 
lington,   Hants,  Herts,  Norf.,  Surr.,  Nthld. ; 
"WaUingwells,  Notts'! ;  "Wellingboro',  Nhamp.; 
Wellingham,  Norf. ;  Wellingley,  York. ;  Wel- 
lingore,  Line. 
Walsingham,  Norf. ;  Wolsingliam,  Drhm. ;  Wool- 

sington,  Nthld. 
Waplington,  York. 
Wapping,  Mddx. 
Warblington,  Hants. 
Wardington,  Oxf. 
Warlingham,  Sussx. 
■Warmingham,    Chesh. ;   "Warmingliurst,  Susi, 

Warmington,  Nhamp.,  Warw. 
■Warningcamp,  Sussx. 
Warrington,  Bucks,  Lane. ;  Werrington,  Devon., 

Nhamp. 
"Warthing,  Sussx. 

WasHngborougli,    Line.  ;    Washingley,   Hvmt.  ; 
Washington,   Berhy.,  Burh.,  Sussx. ;  Wasing, 
Berks ;  Wessington,  Berhy. 
Wateringbury,  Kent. 


'  As  tile  whole  of  these  names  might  commence  with  an  H,  we  should  have 
the  following  forms :  Hwaeplingas,  Hwseppingas,  Hwearflingas,  Hwsetlingae, 
Hwelpingas,  Hwerringas,  Hweopingas,  Hwltlingas,  Hwiteringas,  Hwitingas. 


THE  MARK. 


477 


Waetlingas. 

Weotingas. 

Weolingas. 

"Wendlingas. 

Weningas. 

WeSeringas. 

Westingas. 

Westoningas. 

"Waetlingas'. 

Welpingas'. 

Werringas'. 

"Wippingas'. 

Witlingas'. 

Witeringas*. 

Wittingas'. 


Widingas. 
WiUingas. 


Wylmingas. 

Wining  as. 

Wintringas. 

Wisoingas. 

Wiocingas. 

Widingas. 

WiSingaa. 

Wocingas. 

Weoroingas. 

Wyrlingas. 

Wyrmingaa. 


Watlington,  Norf.,  Oxf. 

Weeting,  Norf. 

Wellington,  Heref.,  Salop.,  Somers.,  Wilts. 

Wendling,  Norf. 

Wennington,  Essex,  Bunt.,  Lane. 

Wittering,  Sussx. ;  Wetheringsett,  Svff. ;  Wither- 

ington,  Wilts. 
Westington,  Glouc. 
Westoning,  Bedf. 
Whatlington,  Sussx. 
Whelpington,  Nthld. 
Wherrington,  Staff'. 
Wliippingham,  Hants. 
Whitlingham,  Norf. 
Whittering,  Nhamp. 

Whittingham,  Lane.,  Nthld. ;  Whittington,  Derb., 
Olouc,  Lane.,  Norf.,  Salop.,  Staff.,    Warw., 
Wore.,  Nthld. 
Widdington,  Essex,  Nthld.,  York. 
WUlingale,  Essex  ;  WiUingdon,  Sussx. ;  WUling- 
ham,  Garni.,   Line.,  Suff. ;  Willington,  Bedf., 
Chesh.,  Derh.,  Drhm.,  Nthld.,  Warw. 
Wilnaington,  Kent,  Salop.,  Somers.,  Sussx. 
Winnington,  Chesh.,  Staff, 
Winteringham,  Line.,  YorTc. 
Wissington,  Salop.,  Suff. 
Witohingham,  Norf. 
Witohling,  Kent ;  Wychling,  Kent. 
Withington,  Oloue.,  Heref.,  Lane.,  Salop.,  Staff., 

Chesh. 
Woking,  Surr. ;  Wokingham,  Berks,  Wilts. 
Workington,  Cumb. 
Worlingiiam,  Suff. ;  Worlington,  Suff.,  Devon. ; 

Worlingworth,  Suff. 
Wormingford,  Essex ;  Worminghall,  Bucks ;  Wor- 
mington,  Glouc. 
^  See  note  in  the  preceding  page. 


478 


APPENDIX  A. 


WeortSingas. 

Wramplingas. 

Wraettingas. 

"Wrseningas. 

"Wrestlingas. 

"Wrihtingas. 

"Wrihtlingas. 

Weomeringas. 

Wymingas. 


Worthing,  Norf.,  Sussx. 

Leic. 
Wramplingham,  Norf. 
Wratting,  Camb.,  Suff. 
"Wreningham,  Norf. 
Wrestlingwortli,  Bedf. 
Wrightington,  Lane. 
Wrilhlington,  Somers. 
Wymering,  Hants. 
Wymington,  Bedf. 


Worthington,  Lane,, 


The  total  number  of  the  names  thus  assumed  from  local  deno- 
minations amounts  to  627,  but  as  several  occur  once  only,  -while 
others  are  found  repeated  in  various  counties,  I  find  the  whole 
number  reaches  to  1329,  which  are  distributed  through  the  coun- 
ties in  a  very  striking  manner,  as  the  following  table  wiQ  show. 


Bedford 22 

Berks.            22 

Bucks 17 

'Cambridge 21 

Cheshire 25 

Cornwall 2 

Cumberland 6 

Derby '.     .  14 

Devon 24 

Dorset 21 

Durham 19 

Essex 48 

Gloucester 46 

Hereford 15 

Hertford 10 

Huntingdon 16 

Kent 60 

Lancashire 26 

Leicester 19 

Lincolnsh 76 


Middlesex 12 

Monmouth 0 

Norfolk 97 

Northampton 35 

Northumberland     ...  48 

Nottingham 22 

Oxford 31 

Rutland 4 

Salop 34 

Somerset 45 

Southampton      ....  33 

Stafford 19 

Suffolk 56 

Surrey 18 

Sussex 68 

Warwick 31 

Westmoreland    ....  2 

Wilts 25 

Worcester 13 

York  (3  Eidings)    .     .     .127 


THE  MAEK.  479 

There  are  two  slight  causes  of  inaccuracy  to  be  borne  in  mind 
in  using  the  foregoing  tables  :  the  first  arises  from  the  insertion  of 
names  which  probably  do  not,  the  other  from  the  omission  of 
names  which  probably  do,  belong  to  this  class.  But  I  think  these 
two  errors  may  nearly  balance  one  another,  and  that  they  do  not 
interfere  with  the  general  correctness  of  the  results. 

It  is  remarkable  how  many  of  these  names  stUl  stand  alone, 
without  any  addition  of -wio,  -ham,  -worSig,  or  similar  words.  The 
total  number  of  patronymical  names  thus  found  (in  the  nominative 
plural)  is  190,  or  very  nearly  one-seventh  of  the  whole  ;  they  are 
thus  distributed  :  in  Kent,  25  ;  Norfolk  and  Sussex  each  24  ; 
Essex  21 ;  Suffolk  15 ;  Yorkshire  13 ;  Lincoln  7  j  Southampton 
6 ;  Berks  and  Surrey,  5  each ;  Bedfordshire,  Lancashire,  Middle- 
sex and  Northampton,  4  each  ;  Hertford,  Huntingdon,  Northum- 
berland and  Nottingham.  3  each;  Cambridge,  Derby,  Dorset, 
Gloucester  and  Oxford,  2  each ;  Bucks,  Devon,  Leicester,  Salop, 
Somerset,  Warwick,  and  Wilts,  1  each ;  and  none  at  all  in  the  re- 
maining ten  counties.  When  now  we  consider  that  of  190  such 
places,  140  are  found  in  the  counties  on  the  eastern  and  south- 
ern coasts  ;  and  that  22  more  are  in  counties  easily  accessible 
through  our  great  navigable  streams,  we  shall  be  led  to  admit 
the  possibility  of  these  having  been  the  original  seats  of  the 
Marks  bearing  these  names ;  and  the  further  possibility  of  the 
settlements  distinguished  by  the  addition  of  -h^m,  -wic  and  so  forth 
to  these  original  names,  having  been  filial  settlements,  or  as  it 
were  colonies,  from  them.  It  also  seems  worthy  of  remark  that 
they  are  hardly  found  to  the  north  of  the  Humber,  or  about 
53°  40'  N.  Lat.,  which  renders  it  probable  that  the  prevailing 
mode  of  emigration  was  to  take  advantage  of  a  N.E.  wind  to  secure 
a  landing  in  the  Wash,  and  thence  coast  southward  and  westward 
as  far  as  circumstances  required.  Sailors,  who  in  the  ninth  cen- 
tury could  find  their  way  from  Norway  to  Iceland  in  sufiicient 
numbers  to  colonize  that  island,  who  in  the  tenth  could  extend 
their  course  from  Iceland  to  Greenland,  and  who  had  noble  spirit 
enough  to  confront  the  perils  of  the  Polar  ocean  rather  than  submit 
to  oppression  at  home,  were  not  likely  to  find  any  insurmountable 


480  APPENDIX  A. 

difiSoulty  in  a  voyage  from  the  Elbe  or  Skager  Kaok  to  England : 
and  the  conquest  of  the  Orkneys  and  Hebrides,  of  the  south  of 
Ireland  and  Man,  nay  of  large  tracts  of  England  by  the  Scandi- 
navians in  the  ninth,  tenth  and  following  centuries,  may  supply 
the  means  of  judging  how  similar  adventures  were  conducted  by 
populations  of  the  same  race,  and  as  noble  spirit,  nine  hundred  or 
a  thousand  years  before. 

The  following  additions  may  be  made  to  the  evidences  given  in 
this  chapter. 

A  marked  linden  or  lime-tree  is  noticed  in  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1317. 
Again  in  Kent  we  hear  of  earnes  beam,  the  -eagle's  tree,  iUcl. 
No.  287 :  it  is  more  probable  that  this  was  a  tree  marked  with  the 
figure  of  an  eagle,  than  that  a  real  bird  of  that  species  should 
have  been  meant.  Further  in  the  boundary  of  the  charter  No. 
393  we  have,  on  Sd,n  merkeden  ok,  to  the  marJced  oak. 

The  sacred  woods  are  again  mentioned  by  Tacitus,  Annal.  i.  59, 
where  he  tells  us  that  Arminius  hung  up  the  captured  Eoman 
ensigns  to  the  gods  of  the  country,  in  the  woods,  luds :  we  hang 
them  up  in  cathedrals.  See  also  Tac.  Germ,  vii.,  Annal.  iv. 
22. 

The  character  of  the  Hark  or  March  is  very  evident  in  the  fol- 
lowing passage  :  "  Siquidem  in  Lindeseia  superiori  extat  prioratus 
qui  Marchby  dicitur,  longas  ao  latas  pasturas  pro  gregibus  alendis 
inhabitans,  non  omnino  private  iure,  sed  communem  cum  com- 
patriotis  libertatem  ex  dono  patronorum  participans,"  etc.  Chron. 
Lanerc.  an.  1289.  See  also  the  quotations  from  the  Indiculua 
Pagan,  and  Synod.  Leptin.  an.  742,  in  Moser,  Osnab.  i.  52,  and 
the  whole  of  his  twenty-ninth  chapter,  for  the  religious  rites  with 
which  boundaries  were  dedicated,  especially  vol.  i.  p.  68,  note  c. 

It  is  more  than  one  could  now  undertake  to  do,  without  such 
local  co-operation  as  is  not  to  be  expected  in  England  as  yet,  but  I 
am  certain  that  the  ancient  Marks  ihight  still  be  traced.  In  look- 
ing over  a  good  county  map  we  are  surprised  by  seeing  the  syste- 
matic succession  of  places  ending  in  -den,  -holt,  -wood,  -hurst, 
-fold,  and  other  words  which  in varia"bly  denote  forests  and  outlying 
pastures  in  the  woods.     These  are  all  in  the  Mark,  and  within 


THE  MARK.  481 

tliem  we  may  trace  with  equal  certainty,  the  -hams,  -tuns,  -worSigs 
and  -stedes  which  imply  settled  habitations.  There  are  few  coun- 
ties which  are  not  thus  distributed  into  districts,  whose  limits  may 
be  assigned  by  the  observation  of  these  peculiar  characteristics. 
I  will  lay  this  down  as  a  rule,  that  the  ancient  Mark  is  to  be  recog- 
nised by  following  the  names  of  places  ■  ending  in  -den  (neut.), 
which  always  denoted  cubile  ferarum,  or  pasture,  usually  for 
swine.  Denu,  a  vaUey  (fem.),  a  British  and  not  Saxon  word,  is 
very  rarely,  perhaps  never,  found  in  composition.  The  actual 
surface  of  the  island,  wherever  the  opportunity  has  been  given  of 
testing  this  hypothesis,  conflnns  its  history.  But  there  are  other 
remarkable  facts  bearing  upon  this  subject,  which  are  only  to  be 
got  at  by  those  who  are  fortunate  enough  to  have  free  access  to 
manorial  records,  before  the  act  of  Charles  II.  destroyed  all  feudal 
services  in  England.  A  striking  example  of  the  mark-jurisdiction 
is  the  "  Court  of  Dens,"  in  Kent.  This  appears  to  have  been  a 
mark-court,  in  the  sense  in  which  mark-court  is  used  throughout 
this  second  chapter,  and  which  gradually  became  a  lord's  court, 
only  when  the  head  markman  succeeded  in  raising. himself  at  the 
expense  of  his  fellows :  a  court  of  the  little  marks,  marches,  or 
pastures  in  Kent,  long  after  the  meaning  of  such  marks  or  marches 
had  been  forgotten  :  a  court  which  in  earlier  times  met  to  regulate 
the  rights  of  the  markmen  in  the  dens  or  pastures.  I  am  indebted 
(among  many  civilities,  which  I  gratefully  acknowledge)  to  the 
Rev.  L.  Larking  of  Ryarsh  for  the  following  extracts  from  Sir 
Roger  Twisden's  journal,  which  throw  some  light  upon  what  the 
court  had  become  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  but 
stOl  show  its  existence,  and  lead  us  to  a  knowledge  of  its  ancient 
form. 

The  reader  who  feels  how  thoroughly  English  liberty  has  become 
grounded  in  the  struggles  between  the  duties  and  privileges  of 
various  classes,  how  entirely  the  national  right  has  been  made  up 
and  settled  by  the  conflict  of  private  rights,  how  impossible  it 
was  for  the  union  of  empire  and  freedom  to  exist, — or  for  impe- 
rhmi  and  freedom  to  co-exist,  without  the  battle  in  which  the 
several  autocracies  measured  their  forces  and  discovered  the  just 

VOL,  I,  2  I 


482  APPENDIX  A. 

terms  of  compromise, — will  value  this  record  of  the  reluctance 
with  which  a  staunch  country  squire  submitted  to  the  duties  of 
his  position.  It  is  not  only  amusing,  but  instructive,  to  watch 
these  men  of  the  seventeenth  century,  fighting  on  the  minutest 
grounds  of  squabble :  very  amusing,  to  those  who  take  the  world 
as  it  is,  to  have  been  always  as  it  is,  and  likely  always  so  to  re- 
main :  very  instructive  to  those  who  know  the  miserable  condition 
from  which  such  "  squabbles  "  have  raised  us.  There  are  people, 
who  having  no  sense  of  right,  but  a  profound  sense  of  the  wrong 
done  them,  raise  barricades,  and  overturn  dynasties  in  moments  of 
irrepressible  and  pardonable  excitement :  there  are  people  on  the 
other  hand  who  steadily  and  oooUy  measure  right  and  wrong,  who 
take  to  the  law-book  rather  than  the  sword,  who  argue  the  ques- 
tion of  ship-money,  on  which  a  system  of  government  depends,  as 
calmly  as  if  it  were  a  question  of  poor-rates  in  a  parish  attorney's 
hands,  and  having  brought  their  right,  the  ancient  right  of  the 
land,  into  light,  fall  back  into  the  orderly  frame  of  society  in 
which  they  lived  before,  as  if  no  years  of  desperate  struggle  had 
intervened, — the  law  being  vindicated,  and  the  work  of  the  work- 
men done.  This  work  without  distinction  of  Parliamentarian  or 
King's  Man  was  done  by  the  Seldens  and  the  Twisdens,  and  men 
of  more  general  note  and  name,  but  not  more  claim  to  our  grati- 
tude and  respect.  But  to  do  this,  required  that  study  which  un- 
happily our  English  gentlemen  no  longer  think  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  their  education,  the  study  of  the  law,  of  which  they  are 
the  guardians,  though  a  professional  class  may  be  its  ministers ; 
and  most  amusing  now  it  is  to  see  how  zealously  these  old  cham- 
pions of  the  law  did  battle  in  its  defence,  even  in  the  most  minute 
and  now  unimportant  details.  It  was  then  a  happy  thing  for 
England  that  there  were  courts  of  Dens,  and  squires  who  did  not 
like  them  :  it  is  now  an  admirable  thing  for  England  that  there 
are  courts  of  all  sorts  and  descriptions,  and  people  who  do  not 
like  them,  who  are  constantly  trying  their  right  against  them, 
constantly  winning  and  losing  at  the  great  game  of  law,  or  per- 
haps the  greater  game,  of  the  forms  under  which  law  is  admini- 
stered,— litigious  people, — people  liking  to  argue  the  right  and 


THE  MARK.  483 

the  wrong  in  a  strict  form  of  logic,  the  legal  form ;  who  are 
always  arguing,  and  therefore  never  fighting.  If  there  had  not 
been  courts  of  Dens  to  argue  about, — and  unhappily,  at  last,  to 
fight  about, — there  would  most  certainly  not  now  be  a  "  High 
Court  of  Parliament,"  for  there  would  never  have  been  those 
who  knew  how  to  establish  it.  The  country-gentlemen  of  the 
seventeenth  century  appeal  to  the  experience  of  the  nineteenth,  in 
every  land  but  this  of  England,  whose  steady,  legal  order  the 
country-gentlemen  of  the  seventeenth  century  founded ;  and  the 
grateful  middle  class  of  the  nineteenth  century  in  no  country  but 
this  respond  to  that  appeal  in  this  year  1848,  by  declaring  that  no 
force,  whether  of  king  or  not  of  king,  shall  be  known  in  England, 
except  that  of  the  law, — the  great  and  ancient  law, — that  all  asso- 
ciations of  men  are  united  in  a  guarantee  of  mutual  peace  and 
security. 

It  is  now  time  to  return  to  Sir  E.  Twisden  and  the  Court  of 
Dens.  It  appears  that  this  was  held  at  Aldington,  and  that  it 
claimed  jurisdiction  over  a  considerable  space.  If  we  follow  the 
main  road  from  Hythe  to  Maidstone,  a  little  to  the  north  of 
Aldington^,  and  running  to  the  east  of  Boughton,  we  find  a  tract 
of  country  extending  to  the  borders  of  Sussex  and  filled  with 
places  ending  in  -den,  or  -hurst ;  this  country  of  the  Dens  runs 
exactly  where  we  should  expect  to  find  it,  viz.  along  the  edge  of 
tho  Weald,  within  whose  shades  the  swains  found  mast  and  pas- 
ture. I  will  enumerate  a  few  of  the  places  so  named  :  they  can 
readily  be  found  on  a  good  map  of  Kent,  and  form  a  belt  of  mark 
or  forest  round  the  cultivated  country,  quite  independent  of  the 
woods  which  once  lay  between  village  and  village. 

Ashenden.  Castleden. 

Bainden.  Chiddenden. 

Benenden.  Cottenden,  Sussex. 

Bethersden.  Cowden. 

Biddenden.  Prittenden. 

'  Aldington  is  about  57'  east  of  Greenwich. 

2  i2 


484 


APPENDIX  A. 


Godden. 

Hazledcn. 

Hcmden. 

Hiffendcn. 

Hollenden. 

Horsmonden. 

Iden,  Sussex. 

Marden,  Susse.v. 

Newenden. 

Eolvenden. 

Eomden. 

Smarden. 

Surrenden. 

Tenterden. 

Wisenden. 

Ashurst; 

Billinghurst,  Sussex. 
Collmgliiirst,  Sussex. 
Crowhurst,  Sussex. 
Dodhurst. 
Duckliurst. 
Ewhurst,  Sussex. 
Fencliuret. 
Groudhurst. 


Greenhurst,  Sussex. 

Hawkhurst. 

Henhurst. 

Hophnrst,  Sussex. 

Lamberliurst. 

Midhurst,  Sussex. 

Nuthurst,  Sussex. 

Penhurst,  Sussex. 

Pensliurst. 

Sandhurst. 

Shadoxhurst. 

SMphurst. 

Sinkhurst. 

Sissinghurst. 

Spcldhurst. 

Staplehurst. 

Tioehurst,  Sussex. 

Wadhurst,  Sussex. 

Warmingliurst,  Susscv. 

Alfold,  Sussex. 
Arnisfold,  Sussex. 
Cowfold,  Sussex. 
Chiddingfold,  Surrey. 
Skinfold,  Sussex. 


It  is  not  likely  that  all  these  various  places,  the  list  of  which 
might  be  greatly  increased,  were  ever  reduced  under  one  judicial 
unity ;  but,  even  with  the  aid  of  Sussex,  I  have  been  able  to  men- 
tion only  twenty-five  dens,  and  we  know  that  at  least  thirty-two, 
if  not  forty-four,  were  subject  to  the  court  of  Aldington. 

The  entries  in  Twisden's  Journal  are  to  the  following  effect : — 
"  18th  September  1655.     I  was  at  Aldyngton  Court,  at  the 
chusing  the  officers  to  gather  the  Lord's  Eent,  where  grew  a 
question,  whither,  if  the  Lord  released  our  Rent,  Sute,  and  Ser- 
vice, to  the  Court,  we  were  subject  to  the  slavery  of  attendance. 


THE  MARK.  485 

and  whither  the  Tenants  could  prescribe  men,  &c.,  &c.,  &o.,  or 
impose  an  office  upon  them, — and  it  was  the  whole  resolution  of 
the  Court,  the  Lord  might  sell  his  quit-rents  and  all  manner  of 
attendance  on  the  Court,  and  then  he  could  not  he  t3fed  to  any 

office,  nor  the  Tenants  impose  any  office  upon  him 

"  The  16th  September  1656,  I  went  to  Aldyngton  Court,  but 
came  too  late,  there  beeing  layd  on  me  the  office  for  eolleoting  the 
32  Denns,  for  my  land  in  them.  I  desired  to  know  what  land  it 
was ...  in  the  32  Dens  upon  which  the  office  was  laid,  but  this  I 
could  not  learn ....  the  issue  was,  that  if  they  can  name  the  land 
or  descry  it,  I  am  to  do  it, — if  not,  I  refused  to  gather  it." 

"  1658.  I  was  at  Aldynton  Court  again,  and  then  there  was 
much  stir  about  this  land  which  could  not  bee  found.  I  stiU 
insisted  the  Denne  of  Pleyynden  held  of  Wye,  that  the  16s.  2d. 
oh.  I  payd  was  for  light  money  in  time  past.  The  Conclusion  was. 
They  will  distrain  me  if  they  can  find  the  land,  and  then  come  to 
a  trial  in  their  Court  which  is  held  at  Smethe." 

"  1659.  I  was  at  Aldington  Court,  where  I  came  before  the 
Steward  sate,  yet  were  they  then  chusing  for  the  32  Denns,  and 
Mr.  Short  brought  me  a  note  for  chusing  Mr.  John  Maynard, 
Serg'  at  Law ....  he  was  not  chosen  after  the  ancient  custom  of 
the  Court,  that  is,  to  present  two  to  the  Steward,  and  he  to  take 
one ....  The  tenants  of  the  12  Denns  pretended  if  it  were  some- 
time a  Custom  it  had  been  long  interrupted,  and  refused  to  foUow 
the  example  of  the  32 ...  .  after  dinner,  this  grew  a  great  dispute, 
Mr.  Short  complaining  of  partiality,  that  the  choice  of  one  man 
was  received  for  the  12  and  not  for  the  32  Dennes.  This  drew 
on  the  manner  of  chusing  of  the  32  Dennes,  which  was,  that  they 
usually  met  at  9  o'clock  long  before  the  Steward  himself  could 
reach  the  Court,  made  choice  of  one  man  before  there  was  a 
Court ....  This  brought  forth  an  excellent  order,  that  the  Denns 
should  chuse  and  present  the  person  by  them  chosen  after  the 
manner  the  other  Culets  did ....  Coming  away,  the  Bailiff  told 
me  he  had  a  writ  to  distreyn  me  for  the  rent  of  the  32  Denns.  I 
told  him  I  had  no  land  held  of  it  that  I  knew.  .  .  .Sir  Edward 
Sydnam,  Lord  of  the  !Manor,  and  who  is  to   answer  the  rents  to 


486  APPENDIX  A. 

the  Exchequer,  told  me  I  would  be  distreyned  for  it, — my  answer 
was,  I  was  not  willing  to  make  my  land  chargeable  with  a  burthen 
more  than  my  ancestors  had  paid — that  there  was  a  Court  of 
Survey  to  be  kept  in  the  Spring, — that  if  I  could  not  then  dis- 
charge myself  of  having  land,  held  of  the  32  Denns,  I  would  and 
must  pay  it." 

"  Aldington  Court.  1664.  S''  John  Maynard  Serg'  at  Law  was 
chosen  to  the  Great  Office  though  it  were  affirmed,  he  being 
Kings  Serg'  would  procure  a  discharge.  The  order  before  men- 
tioned of  6s.  8d.  for  such  Culets  as  received  from  the  Steward  a 
transcript  of  what  they  were  to  collect,  and  10s.  for  the  Great 
Office  was  at  this  Court  willingly  assented  to." 

This  determined  refusal  of  a  Markgraviat  in  the  Mark  of  Kent 
is  amusing  enough;  the  Alberts,  Berohtholds  and  Luitpolts  did 
not  make  quite  so  much  difficulty  about  Brandenburg,  Baden  or 
Ancona.  How  the  dispute  ended  I  do  not  know,  but  the  right 
was  not  in  question :  all  that  Sir  Eoger  doubted  was  its  applica- 
bility to  himself.  StiU  the  nature  of  the  jurisdiction  seems  clear 
enough,  and  the  transition  of  an  old  Mark  Court  into  a  Lord's 
Court,  with  a  steward,  is  obvious  from  the  custom  of  the  Tenants 
chusing  "  before  the  Steward  himseH  could  reach  the  Court ;"  the 
abolition  of  which,  Sir  Eoger  naturally  considered  an  excellent 
thing. 


487 


APPENDIX 

THE  HI'D. 


B. 


Fbom  the  tables  in  the  above  chapter,  it  appears  that  we  cannot 
allow  one  hundred  actual  acres  to  the  Hid,  and  stOl  less  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty.  A  similar  result  will  be  obtained  if  we  examine 
the  entries  in  Domesday.     Thus 


Name. 

Hides 

Acre- 
age. 

At  30 
acres. 

At  40 
acres. 

At  100 
acres. 

At  120 
acres. 

Excess 
at  30. 

Excess 
at  40. 

Keynsham,  Somers 

Dowlish,  Somers 

Baston  in  Gordano,    ] 

Somers.'^  J 

Babington,  Somers.^  ... 
Lullington,  Somers.^  ... 
Road,  Sotnevs.^ 

50 
9 

20 

5 

7 

9 

20 

65 

n 

3330 
680 

1440 

600 

840 

1010 

1210 

2730 

1610 

1500 
270 

600 

150 
210 
270 
600 
1950 

330 

2000 
360 

800 

200 
280 
360 
800 
2600 

440 

5000 
900 

2000 

500 

700 

900 

2000 

6500 

1100 

6000 
1080 

2400 

600 

840 

1080 

2400 

7800 

1320 

1830 
410 

840 

450 
630 
740 
610 

780 

1280 

1330 
320 

640 

400 
560 
650 
410 
130 

1170 

Pilton,  Devon..^    

Taunton,  Somers.^ 

Portshead  with  West- ' 
bury,  Somers.'' J 

1  have  intentionally  selected  one  or  two  examples  where  the 
whole  acreage  exactly  makes  up  the  sum  of  hides  multiplied  by 

'  Here  are  to  be  added  125  acres  of  meadow  and  wood,  and  one  leuga  of 
pasture.  (Domesd.  iii.  p.  133.) 

2  Add  27  acres  of  mead  and  pasture,  and  a  wood,  6  quadragense  long  by  2 
quadr.  wide.  (Ibid.  p.  137.) 

^  Add  20  acres  of  mead  and  pasture,  and  a  wood,  6  quadragense  long  by  2 
wide.  (Ibid.  p.  137.) 

'  Add  91  acres  of  mead,  pasture  and  forest.  (Ibid.  p.  138.) 

'  Add  86  acres  of  mead,  etc.,  and  a  forest  a  leuga  and  a  half  square.  But 
there  was  also  land  not  geldable  which  sufficed  for  20  ploughs ;  and  the  20 
geldable  hides  were  calculated  at  30  ploughs.  Taking  the  same  proportion, 
we  ought  to  reckon  not  30  but  33^  hides  in  Piltou,  which  at  30  acres  would 
give  1000  arable ;  at  40  would  giTC  1333j,  while  the  whole  acreage  is  but  1210. 
This  would  exclude  the  calculation  of  40  acres  ;  but  we  cannot  trust  the  merely 
approximate  supposition  that  the  land  of  20  ploughs  was  to  be  reckoned  in 
the  same  proportion  as  that  for  30. 

"  Taunton  properly  is  52J  geldable  hides,  and  land  for  20  ploughs  not  geld- 
able. The  65  hides  are  made  up  subject  to  the  same  error  as  the  last  calcu- 
lation. The  appendant  manoi-  of  Lidgeard,  with  the  meadow  pastures,  etc., 
amounting  to  519  acres,  is  also  to  be  added,  as  well  as  forest  a  leuga  long,  by 
a  leuga  wide,  and  pasture  two  leugse  long  by  one  wide. 

'  To  these  add  149  acres  of  mead,  etc.  Forest  12  quad,  long  by  3  wide : 
again  forest  12  quad,  long  by  2  wide,  and  6  quadragenje  of  marsh. 


APPENDIX  B. 


120,  because  it  is  probable  that  such  instances  may  have  led  to 
that  calculation  :  but  it  is  necessary  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  Hid 
is  exclusively  arable  land,  and  that  in  the  case  where  the  number 
of  hides  equalled  the  whole  acreage,  there  could  have  been  neither 
forest,  nor  meadow  nor  pasture.  The  notes  on  some  of  the  entries 
will  show  how  erroneous  any  such  calculation  would  necessarily 
be.  And  lest  this  assertion  that  the  hid  is  exclusive  of  unbroken 
land  should  appear  unsupported,  I  wish  the  following  data  to  be 
considered.  But  first  we  must  see  how  the  hid  is  distributed  into 
its  component  parts.  In  Domesday  the  hid  consists  of  four  yard- 
lands,  virga  or  virgata  :  and  the  virga  of  four  farthings  or  farlings, 
ferlingus,  ferlinus,  ferdinus,  fertinus :  thus 

1  fertiu. 

4  fertin.=l  virg. 
16  fertin.=4  virg.  =  1  hide, 
whatever  may  have  been  the  number  of  acres  in  the  ferling.  Again 
in  Domesday,  the  amount  of  an  estate  held  by  any  one  is  given, 
together  with  the  amount  of  wood,  meadow  and  pasture  in  his 
hands.  If  these  be  included  in  the  amount  of  the  hid,  or  its  parts, 
which  the  tenant  held,  we  shall  arrive  at  the  followiag  results  ; 
which  (even  for  a  moment  taking  the  hid  at  120  acres)  are  a 
series  of  reductiones  ad  absurdum.  In  the  Exeter  Domesday, 
fol.  205''  (vol.  iii.  187)  I  find  an  estate  valued  at  11  acres ;  the 
pasture  etc.  mentioned  as  belonging  to  it  is  counted  at  20  acres  : 
these,  it  is  clear,  could  not  be  comprised  in  the  eleven.  But  let  us 
take  a  few  examples  tabularly. 


Bxon.  Domesd. 

Holding. 

Pasture,  etc. 

At  least. 

f.  210.     vol.  iii.  191. 

i  hide. 

93  acres. 

.'.  hide=  186  acres. 

f.211.       191. 

1  virg. 

65    — 

.-.  hide=  220    — 

f.  211,  b.   191. 

Jferl.  (,Vli.) 

6   — 

.-.  hide=  288   — 

f.  2il,b.    191. 

Ivirg. 

40  — 

.-.  hide=  160   — 

f.212.       191. 

i  ferl. 

4  — 

.-.  hide=   192    — 

f.  212.       192. 

3  ferl. 

40   — 

.-.  hide=  213^  — 

f.  213.       192. 

1  hide. 

164  — 

.-.  hide=  164   — 

f.  214.       193. 

1  Tirg. 

40  — 

.-.  hide=  160   — 

f.  216.       196. 

1  Tirg. 

37   - 

.-.  hide=  148    — 

f.  217.       197. 

1  Tirg. 

84  — 

.-.  hide=  336   — 

f.  218. 198. 

Ihide. 

310  — 

.•.hide=  310    - 

f.  224. 203. 

1  hide. 

500  — 

.-.  hide=  500   — 

f.  224,  b.  203. 

1  ferl. 

106   — 

.-.  hide=1696   — 

f.  325.       204. 

1  ferl. 

103   — 

.■.  hide=1648   — 

THE  HI'D.  489 

Now  it  is  particularly  necessary  to  bear  in  mind  that  these  ridi- 
culous amounts  are  the  minimum ;  that  in  every  case  the  arable 
land  remains  to  be  added  to  them,  and  in  some  cases  whole  square 
miles  of  forest  and  moorland.  I  conclude  then  that  the  wood, 
meadow  and  pasture  were  not  included  in  the  hid  or  arable,  but 
were  appurtenant  to  it.  Sometimes  indeed  they  bear  a  very  small 
proportion  to  the  arable,  and  to  the  number  of  cattle  owned — a 
fact  perhaps  to  be  explained  by  the  existence  of  extensive  com- 
mons. 

Let  us  now  endeavour  to  settle  the  amount,  as  well  as  the  pro- 
portions of  the  hid  and  its  several  parts.  As  I  have  said  the  hid 
consisted  of  four  virgates,  the  yirgate  of  four  ferlings\  I  do  not 
give  examples,  because  they  may  be  found  in  every  other  entry  iii 
Domesday ;  but  I  may  add  that  the  gyld  or  tax  payable  to  the 
king  from  the  land,  is  based  upon  precisely  the  same  calculation  : 
the  hid  paid  6  shillings  (worth  now  about  18s.  6d.),  the  virgate 
Is.  6d.,  and  the  ferling  JJ-  or  4id.  Thus  (Exon.  D.  f.  80,  80,  b. 
vol.  iii.  p.  72)  in  the  hundred  of  Meleborne,  the  king  had 
.£18  18s.  4c^d.  as  geld  from  6.3  hides  and  1  ferling  of  land  : 

now        63x6s     =378s. 

1  ferl.  X  iid.  =     Os.i^d 378s.  iid.  or  18^.  18s.  4id. 

Again  (fol.  80,  b.  iii.  p.  73)  the  king  had  .£9  10s.  8^d.  for  31  h. 

3  V.  I  ferl. 

i.e.  31  X  6s.         =186s. 

3  X  Is.  Gd.  =     4s.  dd. 

ix       iid.=    0s.2id IQOs.  8id.  OT  m.  10.  8id. 

in  which  passage,  ferlingus  is  used  for  the  coin  as  well  as  the  mea- 
sure of  land.  Again  (fol.  81,  b.  vol.  iii.  p.  74)  the  geld  for 
60  h.  3  V.  1|  ferl.  was  £18  5s.  0|rf.  ("  unum  obolum  et  unum 
ferling"). 

j.e.  60  X  6s.        =360s. 
3    X  Is.  Cid.  =     4s.  M. 
IJ  X  Os.  4id.=     Os.  6ld 365s.  0|<?.  or  18;.  .5s.  O^d. 

Or  to  test  it  another  way  ;  the  hid=  16  ferUngs,  .■.  60  h.  3  v.  l^fcrl. 

'  From  feower,  four.  Feorling  or  Feor'^ing  are  similar  formations,  and  de- 
note a  fourth,  or  farthing  in  money  or  land ;  also  in  corn  (a  quarter  of  corn ), 
and  in  the  wards  of  a  city.     Ellis,  Introd.  p.  1.  note. 


490  APPENDIX  B. 

=973J  ferl.  But  the  ferl.  paid  i^d.  .:  973^  ferl.  paid  4380|cZ. 
whicli  gives  us  the  same  value  18L  5s.  0|<^. 

Now  if  we  can  ohtain  the  value  of  any  one  of  these  denomina- 
tions, we  can  calculate  all  the  rest  with  security.  The  value  of  the 
virga  or  yardland  we  can  oh  tain :  it  consisted  of  fen  Norman  agri, 
acrse  or  acres,  perhaps  eight  or  eight  and  a  third  Saxon. 

In  the  Exeter  Domesday,  fol.  48  (vol.  iii.  p.  42)  we  find  ten 
hides  of  land  to  he  made  up  of  the  following  parcels,  4  hides 
+  1  virg.  +10  agri +5^  hides +  4  agri; 

then  10  h.=9|  h.  +1  v. +10  a. 
orlO-9ih.=lT.  +10  a. 
or4h.=l  v.+lOa. 

But  fh.=2T. 

.-.  2v.  =  lT.+10a. 
2  —  1  T.  =  10  a.  .-.  1  virga=10  agri. 

But  1  hyd  =  4    virg.  =  16  ferling. 

.•.  1  hycl=40   acre8=33J  Saxon. ' 
1  ferl.  =  2^aei-es=2Jf  Saxon. 

It  will  now  be  seen  why  I  have  given  a  column  in  which  the  whole 
acreage  was  measured  by  a  calculation  of  forty  acres  to  the  hid. 
That  this  result  is  a  near  approximation  to  the  truth  appears  from 
the  following  considerations.  In  the  Cornish  Domesday,  (a  county 
where  arable  land  bore  a  very  small  proportion  to  the  markland, 
forest  and  pasture,)  there  are  a  great  number  of  estates,  valued  at 
one  ager  or  acre.  These  are  generally  said  to  pay  geld  for  half  a 
ferling.  Thus  in  Treuurniuet,  one  ager  paid  geld  for  half  a  ferl- 
ing '  :  so  in  Penquaro^  in  Trelamar^,  in  Lantmatin'',  in  Chilo'- 
goret",  in  Eoslet',  in  Pengelli',  in  Telbricg",  in  Earsalan",  in 
Dimelihoo^" ;  and  similarly  in  Widewot,  two  agri  paid  geld  for 
one  ferling".  Now  throughout  Domesday  there  are  innumerable 
examples  of  land  being  rated  at  less  than  its  real  value,  or  even 


1  Exon.  D.  f.  227.  vol.  iii.  20(5.  '  Ibid.  f.  233.  vol.  iii.  212. 

-  Ibid.  f.  234.  Tol.  iii.  213.  <  Ibid.  f.  235.  vol.  iii.  214. 

=  Ibid.  f.  236,  b.  vol  iii.  216.  "  Ibid.  f.  240.  vol.  iii.  220. 

'  Ibid.  f.  245.  vol.  iii.  225.  «  n,id.  f.  245,  b.  vol.  iii.  225. 

'  Ibid.  f.  254.  vol.  iii.  233.  "  Ibid.  f.  254,  b.  vol.  iii.  2.34. 
"  Ibid.  f.  254,  b.  vol.  iii.  234. 


THE  HI'D.  401 

at  its  real  value  ;  but  I  have  not  detected  any  instance  in  which 
it  is  rated  at  more  :  and  in  Cornwall  especially  the  rating  seems 
to  have  been  in  favour  of  the  tenant.  I  do  not  therefore  believe 
that  one  ager  was  less  than  half  a  ferling :  it  was  either  more 
than  half  a  ferling  or  equal  to  it.  But  ^  ferl.  =1|  Norman  acre, 
which  is  more  than  one  statute  acre ;  therefore  we  may  conclude 
that  the  ager  or  acre  was  equal  to  half  a  ferling.  The  way  1  under- 
stand this,  is  by  the  assumption  that  the  Saxon  acre  was  some- 
what larger  than  the  Norman  :  we  know  that  they  differed  in 
point  of  extent',  and  it  is  possible  that  the  original  Saxon  calcula- 
tion was  founded  upon  multiples' of  eight,  while  the  Norman  was 
reduced  to  a  decimal  notation  :  if  this  were  so,  we  may  believe 
that  the  hid  was  the  unit,  and  that  its  principal  subdivisions  re- 
mained, being  familar  to  the  people,  but  that  the  value  of  the  acre 
waS  slightly  changed.     Hence  that  the 

Saxon  hid  =32  Saxon  acres  =40  Norman  acres. 

feortSing  =  2 =  24  

The  document  entituled  "  Eeotitudines  singularum  personarum  " 
says^,  that  the  poor  settler  on  first  coming  in,  ought  to  have  seven 
acres  laid  down  for  him  in  seed,  out  of  his  yardland ;  and  the 
same  authority  implies  that  his  grass-land  was  usually  short  of 
his  need :  this  it  might  be,  if  he  had  only  one  acre  to  support 
the  two  oxen  and  one  cow  with  which  his  land  was  stocked  on 
entry.  The  lot  of  meadow  and  pasture  attached  to  these  small 
plots  of  one  ager,  is  so  frequently  quoted  at  thirty  agri,  in  Corn- 
wall, that  one  could  almost  imagine  an  enclosure-bill  to  have  been 
passed  just  previous  to  the  Conquest,  under  which  the  possession 
of  even  so  small  a  quantity  as  one  acre  qualified  the  owner  to  re- 
ceive a  handsome  share  of  the  waste. 

It  is  obvious  that  all  these  oalculationa  are  ultimately  founded 
upon  the  value  of  the  acre  relatively  to  our  own  statute  measure, 
in  which  the  survey  of  1841  is  expressed.     That  ager  and  acra 

'  Ellis,  Introd.  p.  1.  The  fractions,  and  the  admixture  of  a  decimal  with 
the  quarterly  division,  seem  to  imply  that  the  later  or  Norman  measure  was 
the  smaller  of  the  two.  '  Thorpe,  i.  434. 


492  APPENDIX  B. 

are  equivalent  terms  appears  from  their  being  used  interchange- 
ably in  various  entries  of  Domesday.  Nor  is  there  any  good  rea- 
son to  suppose  that  the  Normans  made  any  violent  change  in  the 
values  of  these  several  denominations,  although  they  might  adopt 
more  convenient  subdivisions  of  the  larger  sums.  They  did  just 
the  same  thing  in  respect  to  the  Saxon  money.  Besides,  as  it  was 
from  the  Saxons  that  they  derived  the  information  -which  the  Sur- 
vey contains,  it  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  the  Saxon  values  were 
generally  adopted,  at  least  as  far  as  the  hid  was  concerned.  The 
minute  subdivision  of  land  consequent  upon  the  Conquest  probably 
rendered  it  necessary  to  pay  especial  attention  to  the  smaller  units, 
and  I  can  conceive  nothing  more  likely  than  a  slight  change  in  the 
value  of  the  acre,  while  the  hid  and  virgate  remained  unaltered. 
Then  where  an  estate  comprised  only  one  Saxon  acre,  it  might 
readily  be  considered  equal  to  half  a  ferling,  or  1|  acre,  Norfnan 
measure,  for  it  would  have  been  difficult  and  complicated  to  express 
it  in  other  terms.  In  fact  where  small  fractional  parcels  of  land 
were  to  be  subtracted,  the  Commissioners  were  generally  glad  to 
avoid  details,  and  enter  "  A.  has  so  much  in  demesne,  and  the 
Villani  have  aliam  terram,  the  rest  of  the  land."  If  the  Saxon 
ager.  paid  for  half  a  ferling  in  the  time  of  the  Confessor,  it  was 
likely  to  be  taken  at  that  value  in  the  Survey  ;  for  the  law,  quee 
de  minimis  non  curat,  could  hardly  notice  so  trifling  a  deviation. 
The  approximate  value  of  the  Saxon  acre,  however,  I  have  given ; 
it  was  one  day's  work  for  a  plough  and  oxen,  in  other  words  very 
nearly  our  own  statute-acre. 

That  the  value  of  the  hide  became  gradually  indistinct,  when 
reckonings  ceased  to  be  made  in  it,  and  the  calculation  was  taken 
upon  knights'  fees,  is  very  intelligible.  We  consequently  find 
surprising  variations  in  the  amount  of  hides  counted  to  a  knight's 
fee,  as  well  as  the  acres  contained  in  this  last  measure.  In  the 
time  of  Edward  the  Third  it  was  computed  that  there  were  60,215 
knight's  fees  in  England,  which  taking  the  present  acreage  of 
31^770,615  gives  rather  more  than  527  acres  to  a  fee  :  hence  those 
who  believed  a  hide  to  contain  100  acres,  calculated  five  hides  to 
a  knight's  fee,  in  accordance  with  the  Saxon  law  which  made  that 


THE  HI'D.  493 

amount  the  minimum  of  a  thane's  estate,  and  also  to  the  entries 
in  Domesday,  from  which  it  appeared  that  one  miles  went  from 
five  hides  :  but  here  it  was  overlooked  that  the  hide  was  exclusively 
amble  land.  To  such  erroneous  modes  of  calculation  we  owe 
such  entries  as  the  following:  — 

"Decem  acrae  faoiunt  fardeUum,  iv  fardelli  faciunt  virgatum, 
quatuor  virgatae  faciunt  hydam,  quatuor  hydae  faciunt  unum  feo- 
dum." MS.  Harl.  464.  fol.  17,  b. 

where    1  fardel  =   10  acres. 

4  fardels  =  40  acres  =   1  yirgate. 
16  fardelB=160  acres=  4  Tirgates=  1  hide. 
(34  fardelB=640  aerea  =  16  virgates=4  hid6s=l  knight's  fee. 

Again  we  are  told  (Regist.  Burgi  Sci.  Petri,  fol.  81,  b)  that 
"  Quinque  feoda  fuerunt  antiquitus  una  baronia ;  et  quinquo 

hydae  unum  feodum  ;  et  quinque  virgatae  terrae  una  hyda,  quae- 

libet  virgata  de  viginti  acris." 
Or  tabularly, — 

1  virgate  =     20  acres. 
5  TirgaLcB=   100  acr6s=   1  hide. 
25  Tirgates=  500  acres  =  5  hides=l  knight's  fee. 
125  Tirgates=2500  aore3=25  hides=5  fe.es=l  barony. 

which  results  neither  coincide  with  the  last,  nor  with  those  of 
Domesday,  nor  with  those  derived  from  Saxon  authorities. 

The  hidage  of  various  ancient  Gas  which  has  been  given  in 
Chapter  III.  could  naturally  not  be  suiScient  guide  under  tlie  new 
shire  divisions.  Unfortunately  we  have  not  a  complete  account 
of  the  hidage  in  the  shires  ;  nor  does  what  we  have  coincide  with 
the  conclusion  arrived  at  in  the  course  of  the  fourth  chapter. 

In  the  Cotton.  MS.  Claud.  B.  vii.  (fol.  2i)4,  b),  which  appears 
to  have  been  written  in  the  time  of  Henry  III.,  we  have  the  fol- 
lowing entries  : — 

Hydae. 

In  WUtfescyre  continentur 4800 

In  Bedefordscyre  sunt     1200 

In  Cantebrigescyre  sunt 2500 

In  Huntedunesoyre  sunt     800| 

In  ]S^orthamptescyre  sunt    3200 


494 


APPENDIX  B. 


Hydae. 

In  Glouoosterscyre  sunt 2400 

In  Wirecesterscyre  sunt 1200 

In  Herefordesoyre  sunt 1500 

In  Warewycscyre  sunt    1200 

In  Oxenefordsoyre  sunt 2400 

Irf  Salopescyre  sunt     2300 

In  Cestersoyre  sunt     1300 

In  Staffordesoyre  sunt     500 

The  Cotton  MS.  Vesp.  A.  xviii.  fol.  112,  b,  written  in  the  reigu 
of  Edward  I.,  gives  a  different  list  of  counties,  among  which  the 
following  variations  occur  : — 

Bedfordshire    1000 

Northamptonshire    4200 

Gloucestershire    2000- 

Worcestershire      1500 

Shropshire    2400 

Cheshire 1200 

If  we  pursue  the  plan  heretofore  adopted,  we  shall  have  these 
results : — 


County 

Acreage. 

Hidage. 

H.  at  SO. 

H.  at  40. 

Excess 
at  30. 

Excess 
at«. 

Eatio 
at  30. 

Eatio 
at  40. 

Wilts.. 

868,060 

4800 

144,000 

192,000 

724,060 

676,000 

1  :5 

1:3-5 

Bedf... 

297,632 

1200 

36,000 

48,000 

261,632 

249,632 

1;7 

5 

Camb. . 

536,313 

2500 

75,000 

100,000 

461,313 

436,313 

1  :6 

4-5 

Hunt.  . 

242,250 

800^ 

24,015 

32,020 

218,235 

210,230 

1  :9 

7 

Nrhm. 

646,810 

3200 

96,000 

128,000 

550,810 

518,810 

1  :  5-77 

4 

GHouc. 

790,470 

2400 

72,000 

96,000 

718,470 

694,470 

1:10 

7-25 

Wore. . 

459,710 

1200 

36,000 

48,000 

423,700 

411,710 

1 :  11-75 

8-5 

Heref.. 

543,800 

1500 

45,000 

60,000 

502,800 

483,800 

1:  11 

8 

Warw. 

567,930 

1200 

36,000 

48,000 

531,930 

519,930 

1  :  14-75 

10-76 

Oif.... 

467,230 

2400 

72,000 

96,000 

395,230 

371,230 

l:5-5 

4 

Salop. . 

864,360 

2300 

69,000 

92,000 

795,360 

772,360 

1  :  11-5 

8-4 

Chesh. 

649,050 

1300 

39,000 

52,000 

610,050 

597,050 

1  :  15-62 

U-6 

Staff. . . 

736,290 

500 

15,000 

20,000 

721,290 

716,290  1  :  48 

1 :  36-8  1 

Now  either  these  figures  cannot  be  relied  on,  or  we  must  carry 
the  hide  in  this  calculation  to  a  very  different  amount.  If  we 
take  it  at  100  acres,  we  shall  find  the  whole  hidage  of  these  thirteen 
counties  amounts  to  25,300  x  100  or  2,530,000  acres,  while  the 


THE  PII'D.  .  495 

•whole  actual  acreage  is  7,669,905;  giving  anexoesa  of  5, 139, 905, 
and  consequently  a  ratio  of  25  :  51  nearly,  or  1  .  2.  This  would 
a  little  exceed  the  present  ratio,  which  is  5 ;  11,  a  result  which 
appears  very  improbable  indeed  in  the  reign  of  Henry  III.  But 
when  we  consider  the  numberless  errors  of  transcription,  so  un- 
avoidable where  merely  numbers,  and  not  words,  are  given,  and  the 
totally  inconsistent  accounts  contained  in  different  manuscripts, 
we  can  hardly  rest  satisfied  that  the  figures  themselves  are  trust- 
worthy. Even  on  the  hypothesis  that  in  the  time  of  Henry  III. 
or  Edward  I.  the  hide  was  calculated  on  the  new  footing  of  100 
acres,  we  yet  could  not  reconcile  the  conflicting  amounts  assigned 
to  the  counties  themselves. 


496 


APPENDIX   C. 


MANUMISSION  OF  SERFS. 

The  following  examples  of  Manumission  are  illustrative  of  the 
assertions  in  the  text. 


And  he  wylle  fSset  man  freoge 
aefter  his  dsege  selcne  witefaestne 
man  6e  on  his  timan  forgylt 
wsere.  —  Archhisliop  Mlfnc, 
996-1006. 

Butan  ■Saet  heo  wylse  be  Sinre 
gcpafunga  tSset  man  freoge  on 
selcum  tunse  selcne  witepeownee 
mann  See  under  hirse  gejjeowud 
-queen  ^Ifgyfu.  1012. 


Dset  is  rest,  'Sset  ic  geann 
gijet  man  gefreoge  ^Icne  wite- 
faestne man,  Se  ic  on  sprece 
ahte. — .^l^elstan  JE^elinc/. 

And  beon  heora  mann  frige 
sefter  heora  beira  dsege.  — 
Durstan,  1049. 


And  it  is  his  will  that  ye  shall 
manumit,  after  his  life,  every 
convict  who  has  been  ruined  by 
crime,  in  his  time. — Cod.  Dip}. 
No.  716. 

Except  that  she  wills,  with 
thy  permission,  that  they  shall 
manumit,  in  every  one  of  her 
farms,  every  convict  who  was 
reduced  to  slavery  under  her. — 
Cod.  Dipl.  No.  721. 

Firstly,  I  grant ,  that  they 
shall  free  every  convict  whom  I 
got  in  suits. — Cod.  Dipl.  No. 
722. 

And  let  their  serfs  be  free, 
after  both  their  lives. — Cod. 
Dipl.  No.  788. 


Dimidiam  vero  partem  hominum  qui  in  memorata  terra  sub 
servitute  degunt  libertate  donavimus. — Cod.  Dipl.  No.  919. 

Geatfleda  geaf  freolsfor  Godes  Geatflsed  freed,  for  God's  sake 

lufa;]  for  heora  sawlafearfe,  Sset  and  for  her  soul's  need,  namely 

is  Ecceard  smiS,  -^  jElstan  ;)  his  Ecceard  the  smith  and  jElfstan 

wif,  "j  eall  heora  ofsprino  boren  and  his  wife  and  all  their  off- 


MANUMISSION  OF  SERFS. 


497 


■j  unboren ;  ^  Arcil  "j  Cole,  "j 
EegferS  Eadhunes  dohter,  "j 
ealle  Sa  men  Sa  hednon  heora 
heafod  for  hyra  mete,  on  Sam 
yflum  dagum.  Swa  hwa  swd 
gis  awende  "j  hyre  sawla  ^ises 
bereafie,  bereafige  bine  God 
aelmibtig  Siees  lifes  'j  heofona 
noes  :  T  sy  be  awyrged  de^d  "j 
cwic  aa  on  ecnysse.  And  eAc 
beo  hafaSgefreod  SamenSe  heo 
fingede  set  Cwfespatrike,  Sset  is 
jElfwald,  ■]  Colbrand,  ^Isie,  ~j 
Gamal  bis  aune,  Eadred  Trede- 
wode  "3  Ubtred  bis  steopsunu, 
AcTilf-]  Durkyl'j  ^Isige.  Hwa 
'Se  beom  JSises  bereafie  God  ael- 
mibtig sie  beom  "wiaS  ■]  sanote 
Cu8berbt.  —  Geatficed  ;  about 
1060. 


And  io  wille  tSset  aUe  mine 
men  ben  frd  on  birde  and  on 
tiine  for  me  and  for  So  Se  me 
bigeten. — Leofgyfu. 


spring  born  and  imbom ;  and 
Arcil  and  Cole  and  EogferS  Ead- 
bun's  daughter,  and  all  the  men 
wbo  bent  their  beads  for  food  in 
tbe  evil  days.  Wboso  sbail  set 
this  aside  and  deprive  her  soul 
of  this,  may  Almighty  God  de- 
prive him  both  of  this  life  and 
of  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  and 
be  he  accursed,  quick  or  dead, 
for  ever  and  ever.  And  she 
hath  also  freed  tbe  men  for 
whom  she  iuterceded  with  Cos- 
patrick,  namely  ^Ifwald,  and 
Colbrand,  ^Elfsige  and  Gamal 
bis  son,  Eadred  Tredewood  and 
Ubtred  his  stepson,  Aculf  and 
TburkOl  and  ^Isige.  "VVhoso 
depriveth  tbem  of  this,  may  he 
have  the  wrath  of  Almighty 
God  and  Saint  Cuthbert. — Cod. 
Dipl.  No.  925. 

And  I  win  that  all  my  serfs 
be  free,  both  in  manor  and 
farm  for  my  sake  and  tbe  sake 
of  them  that  begot  me. —  Cod. 
Dipl.  No.  931. 


Her  swutelaS  on  Sisse  Cristes 
beo  ^set  LeofenoS,  ^gelnoSes 
3unu  set  Heorstiine,  bsefiJ  ge- 
bobt  bine  'j  his  ofspring  ut  set 
iElfaige  abbod  "j  set  eaUon  bi- 
rede  on  BaSon,  mid  fif  oran  and 
mid  xii  heaf  don  sceapa,  on  Leaf- 

VOL.  I. 


Here  witnesaeth  in  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  LeofenoS,  ^Sel- 
noS's  son  of  Harston,  hath 
bought  out  himself  and  his  off- 
spring, from  abbot  jElfaige  and 
all  the  brotherhood  at  Bath, 
with  five  ores  and  twelve  head 

2e: 


498 


APPENDIX  0. 


cildes  gewitnesse  portgerefan, 
and  on  ealre  8£ere  burhware  on 
BaSon.  Crist  hine  ^blende  Se 
8is  sefre  awende. — Convent  of 
Bath. 

Her  swntelatS  onSisse  Cristes 
bee  tSset  JEgelsige  aet  Linttinne 
haefS  gebobt  Wilsige  his  sunn 
ut  set  ^Ifsige  abbod  on  Bat5on, 
and  set  eallon  birede  to  ecean 
freote. — Convent  of  Bath. 


of  sheep,  by  witness  of  Ledf- 
cild  the  portreeve,  and  all  the 
commonalty  of  Bath.  Christ 
blind  him  that  ever  setteth  this 
aside ! — Cod.  Dipl.  No.  933. 

Here  witnesseth  in  this  book 
of  gospels,  that^Selsigeof  Lin- 
ton hath  bought  out  Wilsige 
his  son  from  ..lElfsige  abbot  at 
Bath,  and  all  the  brotherhood 
to  eternal  freedom. — Cod.  Dipl. 
No.  934. 


Her  swutelaS  onSisse  Cristes 
bee  Saet  ^gelsige  Byttices  sunu 
hsefS  geboht  HUdesige  his  sunu 
ut  set  -ffilfsige  abbod  on  BaSon, 
and  set  eallon  hirede  mid  syxti- 
gon  penegon  to  eeean  freote. — 
Convent  of  Bath. 


Her  swutela^  onSisse  Cristes 
bee  Sset  Godmg  se  bucca  hsefS 
geboht  Leofgife  ^a  dagean  set 
NorSstoce  "j  hyre  ofspring  mid 
healfan  punde  set  JElfsige  abbod 
to  ecean  freote,  on  ealles  ?ses 
hiredes  gewitnesse  on  BaSon. 
Crist  hine  ^blende  Se  Sis  sefre 
dwende. — Convent  of  Bath. 


Her  swTitelaS  on  Sisse  Cristes 
bee  Sset  MUaige  abbod  hsefS  ge- 


Here  witnesseth  in  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  ./ESelsige,  Byt- 
tic's  son,  hath  bought  out  Hil- 
desige  his  son  from  Jjilfsige, 
abbot  at  Bath,  and  all  the  bro- 
therhood, with  sixty  pence,  that 
he  may  be  free  for  ever. — Cod. 
Dipl  No.  935. 

Here  witnesseth  in  this  book 
of  gospels,  that.  Godwig  the 
buck  hath  bought  Leofgifu  the 
doe  at  Northstock,  and  all  her 
offspring,  with  half  apoundfrom 
abbot  JElfsige,  that  she  may  be 
free  for  ever,  by  witness  of  all 
the  brotherhood  in  Bath.  Christ 
blind  him  who  ever  setteth  this 
aside.— Co(^.  Dipl.  No.  936. 

Here  witnesseth  in  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  abbot  .^Ifsige 


MANUMISSION  OF  SERFS. 


499 


freod  Godwine  bace  set  Stantune 
for  hine  ;]  for  ealne  6  one  hired 
on  BaSan,  on  Semannes  gewit- 
nesse  "d  Wulwiges  set  Priscttine 
1  ^Ifrices  ceimes.— Convent  of 
Bath. 

An  ic  an  mine  landsetSlen 
here  toftes  t6  owen  fihte  "j  alle 
mine  men  fre. — Sigeflced. 

And  io  an  Sset  land  aet  Tit  into 
seynte  Paules  birke  Sen  hewen 
to  bedlonde  mid  al  Sset  Seron 
stant,  buten  Se  men  Se  S^r  aren 

fre  men  aUe  for  mine  soule 

And  io  an  Saet  land  set  SuSereye 
mid  aUe  Se  flscoSe  tSe  Serto  biietS 
Sen  hewen  into  sancte  Panles 
kirke,  and  frie  men  So  men  for 
Se  bisoopes  soule ....  And  ic  an 
Sset  lond  set  LuSingloud  Offe 
mine  sustres  sune  "]  his  broSer, 
"}  fre  men  So  men  halue,  and  set 
Mindham  also  for  Se  bisoopes 
soule ....  And  lete  mon  stonden 
so  mikel  so  ic  Seron  fond,  and 
fre  men  So  men  aUe  for  mine 
soule.  .  .  . — Bishop  Deddred. 


Erst  for  his  saule  Palegraue 
into  Seynt  Eddmund,  "j  Witing- 


hath  freed  Godwine  Back  of 
Stanton,  for  his  own  sake  and 
that  of  all  the  brotherhood  at 
Bath,  by  witness  of  Seman  and 
Wulfwig  of  Prisctunand  ^Ifric 
Cerm.— Cod.  Bipl.  No.  937. 

And  to  my  tenants  I  give 
their  tofts  to  be  their  own  pro- 
perty, and  aU  my  serfs  free. — 
Cod.  Dipl.  No  947. 

And  I  grant  the  land  at  Tit 
to  the  brotherhood  at  St.  Paul's 
church  for  the  support  of  their 
table,  with  aU  that  is  upon  it, 
except  the  serfs  there  ;  let  them 
emancipate  these  for  my  soul's 
sake ....  And  I  grant  the  land 
in  Surrey  with  all  the  fishery 
thereunto  appertaining  to  the 
brotherhood  of  St.  Paul's 
church,  and  let  the  serfs  be  freed 
for  the  bishop's  soul ....  And  I 
grant  the  estate  at  LuSingland 
to  Offe  my  sister's  son,  and  his 
brother,  and  let  half  the  serfs 
there  be  freed,  and  so  also  at 
Mendham  for  the  bishop's  soul 
....  And  [at  Hoxne]  let  them 
leave  as  much  stock  as  I  found 
there,  and  let  all  the  serfs  be 
freed  for  my  soul. — Cod.  Bipl. 
No.  957. 

First  for  his  soul,  Palgrave  to 
St.  Edmund,  and  half  Witing- 

2k2 


500 


APPENDIX  0. 


ham  half ,  i  half^ehisscop:  and 
alle  mine  men  fre,  and  ilk  hsebbe 
his  toft  ■:!  his  metecii  T  his  mete- 
corn. — -Durcytel. 


Her  swutelaS  on  ^isum  ge- 
write  Saet  -iEgelsi  on  Wuldeham 
heefS  geldned  be  Siwordes  daege 
biscopes  his  dohter  "J  heore 
dohter  ut  of  Totteles  cynne,  "j 
hsefS  6t5ra  msenn  Sjerin  gedon, 
be  ScEre  burhware  gewitnesse 
on  Hroueoeaster  "j  be  ealle  Sebs 
biscopes  geferan. — JS^ehige. 


ham,  the  other  half  to  the  bi- 
shop :  and  all  my  serfs  free,  and 
let  each  have_hi8  toft,  ^nd  his 
meatcow  and  his  meatcorn. — 
Cod.  Dipl.  No.  959. 

This  writing  witnesseth  that 
JS^elsige  of  "Wouldham  hath 
borrowed  for  the  life  of  Bishop 
Sigeward,  his  daughter  and  her 
daughter  out  of  Tottle'skin,  and 
hath  replaced  them  by  other 
serfs,  by  witness  of  all  the  com- 
monalty of  Rochester,  and  the 
bishop's  comrades. — Cod.  Dipl. 
No.  975. 


And  alle  80  men  fre  for  unker 
boSer  soule. —  Wwlfsige. 

Durkil  and  ^Selgit  unnen 
"Wigorham  into  8e3rntEadmujide 
so  ful  and  so  forS  so  wit  it  owen, 
after  unker  boSer  day,*]  Somen 
half  fre,  fedwe  "j  lisingas. — 
i)ur(yytel. 


And  all  the  serfs  free,  for  both 
our  souls. — Cod.  Dipl.  No.  979. 

Thurkill  and  iE«elgi«  grant 
Wigorham  to  St.  Edmund,  as 
full  and  as  forth  as  we  two 
owned  it,  after  both  our  Hves, 
and  let  them  free  half  the  men, 
both  feows  and  Hsings. — God. 
Dipl.  No.  980. 


The  following  manumissions  from  a  religious  book,  formerly 
the  property  of  St.  Petroc's,  are  selected  from  a  much  larger  num- 
ber found  in  the  Codex  Dipl.  No.  981.  The  British  names  which 
occur  in  them  are  of  great  interest. 


Des  ys  Saes  manes  nama  Se 
Eyrhsie  gefre^de  et  Petroeys 
stowe,   Byhstan  hite   Bluntan 


This  is  the  man's  name  whom 
Byrhtsige  freed  at  St.  Petroc's, 
Byhstan  he  was  called  Blunta's 


MANUMISSION  OF  SEEPS. 


501 


sunu,  on  ^Selhide  gewitnyse 
hys  igen  wif,  and  on  Byrliisiys 
msesepreostes,  and  on  Eiol,  and 
Myrmen,  and  Wunsie,  Mor- 
hEeSSo,  and  Cynsie,  preost. 


son,  by  witness  of  M'SeUxfS  his 
own  wife,  and  Byrhtsige  the 
mass  priest,  and  Riol,  Myrmen, 
Wynsige,  Morhse^So  and  Oyn- 
sige  the  priest. 


Wuenumon  and  hire  team, 
MoruiS  hire  swuster  and  hire 
team,  and  Wurgustel  and  his 
team,  warun  gefreod  her  on 
tune  for  Eadryde  cynigo  and 
for  7ESel[geard]  hiscop  an  Sas 
hirydes  gewitnesse  Se  her  on 
tune  syndun. 


Wuenumon  and  her  offspring, 
MoruiS  her  sister  and  her  off- 
spring, and  Wurgustel  and  his 
offspring  were  manumitted  here 
in  the  town,  for  Eadred  the  king 
and  ^Selgeard  the  bishop,  by 
witness  of  all  the  brotherhood 
here  in  the  town. 


Marh  gefreode  LeSelt  and 
eaUe  hire  team  for  Eadwig  cy- 
ningconhisSegenreliquias:  and 
he  hie  het  l^dan  hider  to  myn- 
stere,  and  her  gefreogian  on  Pe- 
trocys  reliquias,  on  'Ssss  hirydes 
gewitnesse. 


Marh  freed  LeSelt  and  aE.  her 
progeny  for  Eadwig  the  king, 
upon  his  own  reliques  :  and  he 
caused  her  to  be  led  hither  to 
the  minster,  and  here  to  be  freed 
on  Petroc's  reliques,  by  witness 
of  the  brotherhood. 


Her  kyS  on  Sissere  bee  Sset 
-lEilsig  bohte  ^nne  wifmann  On- 
gyneSel  hatte  and  hire  sunu 
GySicosel  setDuroUdemidhealfe 
punde,  set  Ssere  cirioan  dura  on 
Bodmine,  and  sealde  jEilsige 
portgereua  and  Maccosse  hun- 
dredes  mann  .iin.  pengas  to 
tolle  ;  'Si  ferde  jEilsig  to  Se  ^a 
men  bohte,  and  nam  hig  and 
freode  upp  an  Petrooys  weofede, 
Sefre  sacles,  on  gewitnesse  ^issa 


This  book  witnesseth  that 
jiElfsige  bought  a  woman  named 
OngyneSel  and  her  son  GySic- 
cael  from  DurciLd  for  half  a 
pound,  at  the  churoh-door  in 
Bodmin,  and  gave  -ZElfsige,  the 
portreeve  and  Maocos  the  hun- 
dred-man, four  pence  as  toll ; 
then  went  ^Ifsige,  who  bought 
the  serfs,  and  freed  them  at  Pe- 
troc's altar,  ever  sadess,  by  wit- 
ness of  the  following  good  men : 


502 


APPENDIX  0. 


godera  manna :  Saet  wses,  Isaac 
messepreost,  and  BleSouf  messe- 
preost,  and  Wunning  messe- 
preost, andWiilfger  messepreost, 
and  GrifiuS  messepreost,.  and 
Noe  messepreost,  and  "WuriSiciS 
messepre(fet,  and  ^ilsig  diacon, 
and  Maccos,  and  TeSion  Mo- 
dredis  sunu,  and  Kynilm,  and 
Beorlaf,  and  Dirling,  and  Grat- 
cant,  and  Talan.  And  gif  hwa 
Sas  freot  ^brece,  tebbe  him  wiS 
Criste  gemene.     Amen. 


namely,  Isaac  the  masspriest, 
BleScuf  the  masspriest,  "Wun- 
ning the  masspriest,  Wulfger 
tie  masspriest,  GrifluS  the 
masspriest,  Noe  the  masspriest, 
WurSiciS  the  masspriest,  and 
jEUsige  the  deacon,  and  Maccos, 
and  TeSion  Modred's  son,  and 
Cynehelm,  Beorlaf,  Dirling, 
Gratcant  and  Talan.  And  whoso 
breaketh  this  freedom,  let  him 
settle  it  with  Christ !     Amen. 


Her  kyS  on  tSissere  bee  Sset 
jEUric  ^Ifwines  sunu  wolde 
peowian  Putraele  him  to  n^d- 
feowetlinge.  Da  cum  Putrael 
to  Boia  and  bed  his  forespece 
to  ^Ifrice  his  bretSere :  6a  sette 
Boia  Ses  spece  wiS  ^Ifrice;  Saet 
wses  Sset  Putrael  sealde  ^Ifrice 
.Txti.  oxa  set  Sere  cirican  dura 
set  Bodmine,  and  gef  Boia  sixtig 
penga  for  8ere  forspsece,  and 
dide  hine  sylfae  and  his  ofepreng 
^fre  freols  and  saccles  fram  gam 
dsege,  wis  jElfrice  and  wiS  Boia 
and  wis  eaUe  .^Uwines  cyld 
and  heora  ofspreng,  on  Sissere 
gewittnisse :  Isaac  messepreost, 
and  "Wunning  presbyter,  and 
Sewulf  presbyter,  and  Godric 
diacon,  and  Cufure  prauost,  and 
"Wincuf,    and  Wulfwerd,    and 


This  book  witnesseth  that 
iElfric  the  son  of  iElf  wine  want- 
ed to  enslave  Putrael  as  a  need- 
serf.  Then  came  Putrael  to 
Boia  and  begged  his  iateroes- 
sion  with  his  brother  jElfric: 
and  Boia  made  this  agreement 
with  ^Ifric ;  namely  that  Pu- 
trael gave  jElfric  viii  oxen  at 
the  church-door  in  Bodmin,  and 
gave  Boia  sixty  pence  for  the 
intercession,  and  so  made  him- 
self and  his  offspring  ever  free 
and  sacless  from  that  day  forth, 
as  to^lfric,  Boia,  and'aU^lf- 
wine's  children  and  their  off- 
spring, by  this  witness :  Isaac 
the  masspriest,  "Wunning  the 
Presbyter,  Sewulf  the  presby- 
ter, Godric  the  deacon,  Ceufur 
the  provost,  "Wiucuf,  "Wulfwerp, 


MANUMISSIOIS  OF  SEKFS, 


603 


Gestin,  Ses  bisceopes  stiwerd, 
aad  Artaoa,  and  Kinilm,  and 
Godrie  map,  and  Wulfgdr,  and 
ma  godra  manna. 

Her  cy6  on  Syson  bee  Sset 
jElwold  gef  reode  Hwatu  for  bys 
sdwle  a[t]Petrooys  stow  a  degye 
and  sefter  degye.  An[d]  iElger 
ys  gewytnesse,  and  Godrio,  and 
Wallop,  and  GryfyiS,  and  BleytS- 
cuf,  and  Salaman.  And  bebbe 
be  Gode  cnrs  and  sanctes  Pe- 
troeus  and  sealle  welkynes  sanc- 
tas  'Se  Saefc  brece  Sset  ydon  ys. 
Amen. 


Gestin.  tbe  bishop's  steward, 
Artaea,  Kinilm,  Godrie  Map, 
Wulfgar  and  otber  good  men. 


Tbis  book  witnessetb  tbat 
-(Elfwold  freed  Hwatu  for  bis 
soul,  at  St.  Petroo's,  botb  during 
life  and  after  life.  And  ^Ifgar 
is  a  witness,  and  Godrie,  and 
WaUo«,  and  GriflltS,  and  Bleyt5- 
cuf,  and  Salaman.  And  let  bim 
wbo  breaketb  wbat  is  done  bave 
tbe  curse  of  God  and  St.  Petroc 
and  all  tbe  saints  of  heaven. 
Amen. 


Des  sint  Sa  menn  ^e  Wulf- 
sige  byscop  freode  for  Eitdgstr 
oinig  and  for  hyne  sdwle,  set 
Petrocys  wefode :  Leuhelec,"We- 
let,  . .  nwalt,  Beli,  losep,  Den- 
gel,  Proswite,  Tancwuestel :  an 
Sas  gewitnese,  Byrhsige  msesse- 
prost,  Mermen  masseprost,  Mar, 
Catuuti,  Wenwiu  Puer,  MeS- 
wuistel,  losep. 

Dys  syndun  S^ra  manna  na- 
man  Se  Wulf sige  byscop  gefreo- 
det  set  Petrocys  wefode  for  Ead- 
gar  and  for  bine  silfne,  and 
Byrbsi  ys  gewitnese  masseprost, 
and  Mermen  masseprost,  and 
Morhi  :  Diuset  and  eaUe  here 
team. 


These  are  the  men  whom 
Wulfsige  tbe  bishop  freed  for 
Eadgar  the  king  and  for  his  own 
soul,  atPetroc's  altar:  Leuhelec, 

"Welet nwalt,  Beli,  Josep, 

Bengal,  Proswite,  Tancwues- 
tel :  by  witness  of  Byrhsige  the 
masspriest.  Mermen  the  mass- 
priest.  Mar,  Catuuti,  Wenwiu 
Puer,  MeSwuistel,  Josep. 

These  are  the  names  of  the 
men  whom  Wulfsige  the  bishop 
freed  at  Petroo's  altar  for  Ead- 
gar and  himself,  by  witness  of 
Byrbsi  the  masspriest,  Mermen 
tbe  masspriest  and  Morhi :  Diu- 
set and  all  her  offspring. 


604 


APPENDIX  C. 


Dys  sindum  Sdra  manna  na- 
man  ^e  Wunsie  gefreode  at 
Petrocys  stowe,  [for]  Eadgdr 
cinig,  on  ealle  ^ses  Mredys  ge- 
witnesse:Conmonoo,Iarnwallon, 
and  "WenwBsrtSlon  and  Mseiloc. 


These  are  the  names  of  the 
serfs  whom  Wunsige  freed  at 
St.  Petroc's,  for  king  E^dgar, 
by  -witness  of  all  the  brother- 
hood :  Conmonoc,  larnwallon, 
"Wenweer'Slon  and  Maeiloo. 


Alfred  by  his  will  manumitted  all  his  unfree  dependents,  and 
with  great  care  provided  for  their  enjoyment  of  this  liberty :  he 


And  I  pray  in  the  name  of 
God  and  of  his  saints,  that  none 
of  my  kinsmen  or  heirs  oppress 
any  of  my  dependents  for  whom 
I  paid,  and  whom  the  witan  of 
the  "Westsaxons  legally  adj  adged 
to  me,  that  I  might  leave  them 
free  or  f  edw,  whichever  I  chose; 
but  I  for  God's  love  and  my  own 
soul's  need,  will  that  they  shall 
enjoy  their  freedom  and  their 
choice ;  and  I  command  in  the 
name  of  the  living  God,  that  no 
one  disquiet  them,  either  by  de- 
mand of  money,  or  in  any  other 
way,  so  that  they  may  not  choose 
whomsoever  they  please  [as  a 
protector]. 

Cyrelif  is  a  person  who  has  a  right  of  choice,  or  who  has  exer- 
cised a  choice  :  these  must  have  been  poor  men,  free  or  unfree,  who 
had  attached  themselves  personally  to  Alfred,  voluntarily  or  not. 
He  provides  that  these  as  well  as  Ms  serfs  may  have  full  liberty 
to  select  any  other  lord,  without  disquiet  through  demands  of 


And  ic  bidde  on  godes  naman 
and  on  his  haligra,  Sset  minra 
maga  nan  ne  yrfewearda  ne  ge- 
swence  ndn  UEenig  cyrelif  Sara 
Se  ic  foregeald,  "j  me  "West- 
seaxena  witan  to  rihtegerehton, 
Sset  ic  hi  mot  Isetan  sw^  freo 
swd  Jieowe,  swiSer  ic  wille ;  ao 
ic  for  Godes  lufan  and  for  minre 
sdwle  ])earfe,  wylle  Sset  h^  s^n 
heora  freolses  wyr8e,  "j  byre 
eyres ;  and  ic  on  Godes  lifiendes 
naman  beode,  8set  hj  nan  man 
ne  brocie,  ne  mid  feos  manunge 
ne  mid  nEeningum  fingum,  gset 
hie  ne  motan  ceosan  swylcne 
mann  swylee  hie  wyllan. 


'  Ood.  Dipl.  No.  314. 


MANUMISSION  OF  SERFS. 


605 


arrears  or  any  other  claims.  This  is  confirmatory  of  the  view 
taken  in  the  text,  that  the  manumitted  serf  was  obliged  to  find 
himself  a  lord,  and  so  did  not  become  fully  free. 


And  freoge  man  Wulfware, 
folgige  Sam  ?5e  hyre  le6fo[st  35",] 

ealswa,  and  freoge  man 

WnMsede  on  Sffit  gerdd  Sset  heo 
folgige  ^tSelfi^de  -j  Eadgyfe  : 
and  heo  beowseS  Eadgyfe  ane 
crencestrah  1  ^ne  semestran, 
68er  hatte  Eadgyfu,  oSer  hdtte 
JESelgyfu ;  ■j  freoge  man  Ger- 

burg  1  Misoin,  -]  his el, 

•]  Burhulfes  dohtur  set  Cinnuo, 
■J  .^Ifsige  "j  his  wif  "j  his  yldran 
dohter,  T  Ceolstanes  wif;  "j  set 
Ceorlatune  freoge  man  Pifus  "J 

Eadwine,  "j e ...  an  wife ; 

■3  set  Eaccaneumbe  freoge  man 
M^ehn  i  Man  "]  lohannan,  "j 
Sprow  T  his  wif,  'j  Ene  fsette, 
•j  Gersande  "j  Suel ;  "j  set  Colles- 
hylle  freoge  man  ^Selg5'8e  "j 
Biocan  wif,  "j  ^ifan  -j  Sedan,  ■j 
Gurhannes  wif,  "j  freoge  man 
Wulfware    swystor    Bryhsiges 

wif,  "j Sisne  wyrhtan,  'j 

Wulfg5'«e  .(ElfswJSe  dohtor :  "j 
gif  i5Ser  hwjic  witefeowman  s^ 
buton  Syson,  Seheogefeowede, 
heo  gelJfS  to  hyre  bearnon  Sset 
hi  hine  wyHon  lihtan  for  hyre 
sduUe 


AndletWuIfwarube  free,  and 
foUow  whom  she  best  pleases, 
and  also . .  . . ,  and  let  Wulfleed 
be  freed  on  condition  that  she 
follow  ^«elflsed  and  Edith :  and 
she  bequeathed  to  Edith  one 
weaving  woman  and  one  semp- 
stress, the  one  called  Edith,  the 
other  -iESelgifu  ;  and  let  them 
free  Gerburg,  and  Miseiti,  and 
his ...  .  and  Burhwulf' s  daugh- 
ter at  Cinnuc,  and  ^Ifsige  and 
his  wife  and  elder  daughter,  and 
Ceolstan's  wife ;  and  at  Charlton 
let  them  free  Pifus  and  Eadwyn, 
and ....  wife ;  and  at  Faccombe 
let  them  free  -(ESelm,  and  Man, 
and  Johanna,  andSprow  andhis 
wife,  and  Ene  the  fat,  and  Ger- 
sand  and  Suel ;  and  at  Coleshill 
let  them  free  -iESelg^S  and 
Bicca's  wife,  jEfie  and  Bede, 
and  Gurhan's  wife,  and  let  them 
free  Wulfware' s  sister  Byrhsiges 

wife  and this  wright,  and 

WulfgJtS  .^IfswjS's  daughter  : 
and  if  there  be  any  other  con- 
victs besides  these,  whom  she  re- 
duced to  slavery,  she  trusts  that 
her  children  will  give  them  this 
alleviation  for  her  soul's  sake 


606 


APPENDIX  0. 


Denne  an  hioSdnhiwumSara 
gebura  8e  on  Sdm  gafollande  sitfc- 
a^,  T  Sera  |)e6wra  manna  hio  an 
hyre  syna  dehter  Eadgyfe "]  6sBs 
jTfes,  butan  Sam  sdiilsceatte  6e 
man  bd  Gifle  syllan  sceal ;  "]  Mo 
wylle  ,Saet  man  laete  on  Sam 
lande  atandan  vi  oxan  "]  iiii  c^ 
mid  iiii  cealfum ;  "j  of  Sam 
peowan  mannan  set  Cinniio  heo 
becwiS  Eadwolde,  Ceolstan  Ea- 
stdnes  sunu,  ■j  jEflfan  sunu ;  "] 
Bnrhwynne,  Martin  "j  his  wif ; 
■j  hio  beowiS  Eadgyfe  S^r 
angean  ^Ifsige  Sene  cdc  "j  Tefl 
"Wareburgan  debtor,  "j  Herestan 
■]  his  wif,  "j  Ecelm  T  his  wif,  "j 
heora  cUd,  "j  Cynestan  ^  Wyn- 
sige,  "J  Bryhtrices  sunu,  "j  EM- 
W3rane,  T  Euneles  sunu  *]  ^If- 
weres  dohtor ;  and  hio  becwiS 
MSe\&&ie  Elhhelmes  dehter 
Sa  geongran. —  Wynjlced,  about 
995. 


Then  she  grants  the  convent 
the  boors  who  sit  on  rent-paying 
land,  and  the  serfs  she  gives  to 
her  son's  daughter  Edith,  and 
also  the  chattels,  except  the  soul- 
shot  which  they  are  to  pay  to 
Gifle.  And  it  is  her  win  that  they 
shall  leave  on  the  land  six  oxen 
and  four  cows  with  four  calves  ; 
and  of  the  serfs  at  Cinnuc  she 
bequeaths  to  Eadwold,  Ceolstan 
Eastitn's  son,  and  jEffe's  son; 
and  to  Burhwyn  she  gives  Mar- 
tin and  his  wife  ;  and  she  be- 
queaths again,  to  Edith,  JElfsige 
the  cook,  and  Tefl,  Wasrburge's 
daughter,  and  Herestan  and  his 
wife,  Eghelm  and  his  wife  and 
their  child,  Cynestan  and  Wyn- 
sige  and  Brihtric's  son,  and 
Eadwyn,  and  Bunel's  son,  and 
^Ifweres  daughter  ;  and  she 
bequeaths  to  ^Selfl£ed  Ealh- 
helms  younger  daughter. — God. 
Dipl.  No.  1290. 


The  next  passage  which  I  have  to  cite  is  unhappily  very  cor- 
rupt, but  as  the  sense  is  obvious  I  have  given  such  corrections  as 
were  required  :  the  readings  of  the  MS.  may  be  seen-  in  the  copy 
printed  Cod.  Dipl.  No.  1339. 

And  io  wUle  Saet  mine  men  And  I  will  that  my  serfs  shall 

beon  ealle  freo ....  And  ic  wille  all  be  free. . .  And  I  will  that  all 

Saet  ealle  Sa  men  Sa  ic  an  freo,  the  men  to  whom  I  grant  free- 

Sset  hi  haebben  ealle  J^ingSa  hy  dom  shall  have  every  thing  which 

under  hande  habbaS,  butan  Saet  is  under  their  hand,  except  the 


MANUMISSION  OF  SERFS. 


607 


lond  set  Herelingum  Stigande 
arcebisceope  minum  hlaforde, 
swa  hitstent,  butan  Sa  mea  beon 
ealle  freo. — Cytel,  about  1055. 


land  at  Harling  which.  I  give  to 
archbishop  Stigand  my  lord,  as 
it  stands,  only  that  the  serfs 
are  all  to  be  fiee.—Cod.  JDipl. 
No.  1342. 


The  following  manumissions  are  recorded  by  the  Convent  in 
Bath.    They  will  be  found  in  the  Codex  Diplomaticus,  No.  1351. 


HerswutelaS  on  Sissere  Cristes 
bee  ^set  Eadric  set  Fordan  hsefS 
goboht  Ssegyfu  his  dohtor  eet 
JElfsige  abbod  and  set  Sam  hi- 
rede  on  Ba8an  to  ecum  freote, 
and  eaU  hire  ofspring. 


Her  swutela'S  on  Sisse  Cristes 
bee  'SsetM]£nc  Scot  and^gelric 
Scot  synd  gefreod  for  ^Ifsiges 
abbodes  sawle  to  ecan  freote. 
Dis  is  gedon  on  eaUes  hiredes 
gewitnesse. 


Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  Gospels  that  Eddric  at 'Ford 
hath  bought  Ssegyfu  his  daugh- 
ter from  ./Elfsige  the  abbot  and 
the  convent  at  Bath,  that  she 
may  be  free  for  ever,  and  all 
her  offspring. 

Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  jElfric  the  Scot 
and  ^SeWc  the  Scot  are  made 
free,  for  the  soul  of  Abbot  ^If- 
sige,  that  they  may  be  free  for 
ever.  This  is  done  by  witness 
of  aU  the  convent. 


Her  s  wutelaS  on  Sissere  Cristes 
bee,  Sset^lfwig  se  red  hsefS  ge- 
boht  hine  selfne  ut  set  ^Ifsige 
abbot  and  eaUon  hirede  mid 
dnon  punde.  Bar  is  to  gewitnes 
eaU  se  hired  on  BaSan.  Crist 
hine  dblende  Se  Sis  gewrit 
awende. 

Her  swutelaS  in  Sisre  Cristes 
bee,  Sset  lohann  haefS  geboht 


Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  .lElfwig  the  red 
hath  bought  himself  out  from 
jElfsige  the  abbot  and  all  the 
convent  for  one  pound.  To  this 
is  witness  all  the  convent  in 
Bath.  Christ  blind  him  who 
setteth  this  writ  aside  ! 

Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of    gospels,    that    John    hath 


508 


APPENDIX  0. 


Gunnilde,  purkilles  dohter,  set 
Gode,  LeofendSes  lafe,t61iealfaii 
punde,  on  ealles  hiredes  gewil^ 
nysse.  Crist  hine  ablende,  "Se 
^is  gewrit  dwende.  And  he 
hsefS  hi  beteht  Griste  "j  sancte 
Petre  for  his  moder  sdwle. 


Her  s  wutelaS  on  Sissere  Cristes 
bee,  ^set  S^wi  Hagg  tet  Wide- 
cumbe  hsefS  gedon  ut  his  twegen 
suna  set-Sllfsige  abbude,on  ealles 
hiredes  gewitnesse. 


bought  Gunhild,  Thurkill's 
daughter,  from  G6de  LeofenaS's 
widow,  for  half  a  pound,  by  wit- 
ness of  all  the  convent.  Christ 
bHnd  him  who  setteth  this  writ 
aside  !  And  he  hath  given  her 
to  Christ  and  St.  Peter  for  his 
mother's  soul. 

Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  Ssewig  Hagg  of 
Widcomb  hath  done  out  his  two 
sons  from  ^Ifeige  the  abbot,  by 
witness  of  all  the  convent. 


HerswutelatSonSissereCristes 
bee,  Sset  JEgylm^r  bohte  Sse- 
'Sif'Se  set  Sfewolde  abbude,  mid 
.m.  maxan  on  ealles  hiredes 
gewitnysse ;  and  ofer  his  dseg 
and  his  wifes  dseg  beo  se  man 
freoh.  Crist  hine  ablende,  'Se 
Sis  gewrit  dwende. 


Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
ofgospels,that^Selm^rbought 
SseSr5;S  from  S^wold  the  abbot 
for  two  mancuses,  by  witness 
of  aUthe  convent ;  and  after  his 
and  his  wife's  life  let  the  serf 
be  free.  Christ  blind  him  who 
setteth  this  writ  aside  ! 


Her  swutelaS  ontSissere  Cristes 
bee,  Saet  Wulfwine  Hdreberd 
bohte  set  ^Ifsige  abbude,  ^If- 
g^t5e  mid  healfan  punde  on  ealles 
hiredes  gewitnysse :  and  Crist 
hine  ablende  Se  Sis  gewrit 
d,wende. 


Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  Wulfwine  Hoar- 
beard  bought  ./Elfg^S  from  ab- 
bot ^Ifsige  for  half  a  poimd,  by 
witness  of  all  the  convent :  and 
Christ  blind  him  who  setteth 
this  writ  aside ! 


Her  s  wutelatS  onSissere  Cristes 
bdc,  ^8et./5Sgylsige  bohte  Wynric 
set^lfsige  abbude  mid  anon  yre 
goldes.  Dysses  ys  to  gewitnysse 


Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that.^Selsige  bought 
Wynric  from  abbot  ^Ifsige  for 
an  ore  of  gold.  The  witnesses  of 


MAJSrUMISSION  OF  SEEPS. 


509 


^Ifryd  portgereua  and  eal  se  this  are  JEIfred  the  portreeve 
hired  on  BaSon.  Crist  hine  and  all  the  convent  at  Bath, 
ablende  Se  Sis  gewrit  awende.       Christ  blind  him  who  setteth 

this  writ  aside ! 


HerswutelatS  onSissere  Cristes 
bee,  Sset  Siwine  Leofwies  sunu 
set  Lincumbe  hafaS  geboht  Sy  de- 
fldede  lit  mid  f  if  scyllingam  and 

penegam  xt  lohanne  bi- 

scope  and  set  eallon  Sam  hirede 
onBaSontoecmnfreote:  and  her 
to  is  gewitnesse  Godric  Ladda 
and  Ssewold  and  his  twegen  su- 
nan  Soirewold  and  Brihtwold. 

Her  swiitelaS  on  Sisse  Cristes 
bee,  Sset  LifgiS  set  Forda  is  ge- 
freod,  and  hire  twa  cUd,  for  Sone 
bisoop  Johanne  and  for  ealne 
Sone  hired  on  BaSon,  on  ^K- 
redes.  gewitnesse  Aspania. 

Her  cyS  on  Sisse  bee  Seet 
H[un]fl[gd]  gebohte  WulfgJ^e 
set  jElfrice  .^Selstanes  su[na] 
jESelminges,  ou  "Winemines  ge- 
witnisse  eald-portgerefan,  and 
on  Godrices  hissuna,andon  JElf- 
winesMannan  suna,and  on  Leof- 
rices  cildes  set  Hymed,  and  on 
^Ifrices  jElfhelmes  sunu  geon- 
gan :  and  Brun  by  del  nam  Sset 
toll  .on  ^Ifstanes  gewitnisse 
msessepreostes  and  on  Leofrioes 
Winemines  sima,  and  on  ma 
l[Sweda  "j  gehadodra.] 


Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  Sigewine  Leof- 
wige's  son  of  Lincomb  hath 
bought  Sydefl^d  out  with  five 
shillings  and  ....  pence  from 
bishop  John  and  all  the  convent 
at  Bath  to  be  free  for  ever  : 
and  witness  thereof  are  Godric 
Ladda,  and  Ssewold  and  his  two 
sons  Seirewold  and  Brihtwold. 

Here  witnesseth  on  this  book 
of  gospels,  that  LifgiS  at  Ford 
is  freed,  with  her  two  children, 
for  bishop  John  and  all  the 
convent  at  Bath,  by  witness  of 
Alfred  Aspania. 

Here  witnesseth  in  this  book 
that  Hunfl^d  bought  Wulfg^ 
from  ^Ifric  the  son  of ^Selstan 
the  son  of  JEgelm,  by  witness 
of  "Winemine  the  old  portreeve, 
and  of  Godric  his  son,  and  ^If- 
wine  Manna's  son,  and  Leofric 
the  child  at  Hymed,  and  JElfric 
^Ifhelm's  son,  the  young :  and 
Brun  the  beadle  took  the  toU 
by  witness  of  ^Ifstdn  the  mass- 
priest,  of  Leofric  Winemine's 
son  and  more  persons  both  lay 
and  ordained. — God.  Dipl.  No. 
1353. 


510  APPENDIX  C. 

These  examples,  so  numerous  and  varied,  supply  a  very  clear 
view  of  the  mode  of  emancipation,  and  its  objects,  in  the  Anglo- 
saxon  time.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  we  have  not  more  of  them, 
and  from  other  places :  but  stiU,  as  it  is  probable  that  the  sj'stem 
adopted  by  the  clergy  prevailed  throughout  England,  these  may 
serve  as  a  very  satisfactory  specimen  of  the  usual  course  on  these 
occastons, — both  as  to  the  form  of  manumission  and  the  method 
of  providing  for  the  emancipated  serf. 


511 


APPENDIX  D. 

OECT'S  GUILD  AT  ABBOTSBDEY. 
(From  the  Cod.  Dipt  No.  942.) 

"  This  writing  witaesseth  that  Orcy  hath  granted  the  guildhall 
at  Abbotsbury  and  the  site  thereof,  to  the  honour  of  God  and  St. 
Peter,  and  for  a  property  to  the  guild,  both  during  his  life  and 
after  his  life,  for  a  long  lasting  commemoration  of  himself  and  his 
consort.  Let  him  that  would  set  it  aside,  answer  it  to  God  in  the 
great  day  of  judgment ! 

"  Now  these  are  the  covenants  which  Orey  and  the  guildsmen  of 
Abbotsbury  have  ordained,  to  the  honour  of  God,  the  worship  of 
St.  Peter,  and  the  hele  of  their  own  souls.  Firstly ;  three  days 
before  St.  Peter's  mass,  from  each  guUdbrother  one  penny,  or  one 
pennyworth  of  wax, — look  which  the  minster  most  needeth ;  and 
on  the  mass  eve,  from  every  two  guUdbrothers  one  broad  loaf, 
well  sifted  and  well  raised,  towards  our  common  alms  ;  and  five 
weeks  before  Peter's  mass,  let  each  guUdbrother  contribute  one 
guildsester  full  of  clean  wheat,  and  let  this  be  paid  within  two 
days,  on  forfeiture  of  the  entrance,  which  is  three  sesters  of  wheat. 
And  let  the  wood  be  paid  within  three  days  after  the  corn-con- 
tribution, from  every  full  guUdbrother  one  load  of  wood,  and 
from  those  who  are  not  full  brothers,  two  ;  or  let  him  pay  one 
guildsester  of  corn.  And  let  him  that  undertaketh  a  charge 
and  performeth  it  not  accordingly,  be  mulcted  in  the  amount  of 
his  entrance ;  and  be  there  no  remission.  And  if  one  brother  mis- 
greet  another  within  the  guild,  in  hostile  temper,  let  him  atone 
for  it  to  aR  the  fellowship  with  the  amount  of  his  entrance,  and 
after  that  to  him  whom  he  misgreeted,  as  they  two  may  arrange  : 
and  if  he  will  not  bend  to  compensation,  let  him  lose  our  feUow- 


613  APPENDIX  D. 

ship  and  every  other  advantage  of  the  guild.  And  let  him  that 
introduceth  more  guests  than  he  ought,  without  leave  of  the  stew- 
ard and  the  caterers,  forfeit  his  entrance.  And  if  any  of  our  fel- 
lowship should  pass  away  from  us,  let  each  brother  contribute  a 
penny  over  the  corpse  for  the  soul's  hele  or  pay bro- 
thers :  and  if  any  one  of  us  should  be  afflicted  with  sickness  within 

sixty, we  are  to  find  fifteen  men  who  shaU  fetch  him, 

and  if  he  be  dead,  thirty,  and  they  shall  bring  him  to  the  place 
which  he  desired  to  go  to,  while  he  lived.  And  if  he  die  in  this 
present  place,  let  the  steward  have  warning  to  what  place  the 
corpse  is  to  go ;  and  let  the  steward  warn  the  brethren,  the  greatest 
number  that  he  can  ride  or  send  to,  that  they  shall  come  thither  and 
worthily  accompany  the  corpse  and  bear  it  to  the  minster,  and 
earnestly  pray  there  for  the  soul.  It  is  rightly  ordained  a  guild- 
ship  if  we  do  thus,  and  well  fitting  it  is  both  toward  God  and 
man  :  for  we  know  not  which  of  us  shall  first  depart. 

"  Now  we  have  faith  through  God's  assistance,  that  the  afore- 
said ordinance,  if  we  rightly  maintain  it,  shall  be  to  tho  benefit  of 
us  all.  Let  us  earnestly  from  the  bottom  of  our  hearts  beseech 
Almighty  God  to  have  mercy  upon  us,  and  also  his  holy  apostle 
St.  Peter  to  make  intercession  for  us,  and  take  our  way  unto  eter- 
nal rest,  because  for  his  sake  we  have  gathered  this  guild  together: 
he  hath  the  power  in  heaven  to  admit  into  heaven  whomso  he 
wUl,  and  to  exclude  whomso  he  will  not,  even  as  Christ  himself 
spake  unto  him  in  his  gospel :  Peter,  I  give  to  thee  the  keys  of 
heaven,  and  whatsoever  thou  wilt  have  bound  on  earth,  the  same 
shall  be  bound  in  heaven,  and  whatsoever  thou  wUt  have  unbound 
on  earth,  the  same  shall  be  unbound  in  heaven.  Let  us  have 
hope  and  trust  in  him,  that  he  will  guide  us  here  in  this  world, 
and  after  death  be  a  help  to  our  souls.  May  he  bring  us  to  eternal 
rest !     Amen ! " 

THE  GUILD  AT  EXETEE. 

"  This  assembly  was  collected  in  Exeter,  for  the  love  of  God,  and 
for  our  soul's  need,  both  in  regard  to  our  health  of  life  here,  and 
to  the  after  days,  which  we  desire  for  ourselves  by  God's  doom. 


CORPORATE  EXISTENCE.  513 

Now  we  have  agreed  that  our  meeting  shall  be  thrice  in  the  twelve 
months  ;  once  at  St.  Michael's  Mass,  secondly  at  St.  Mary's  Mass, 
after  midwinter,  and  thirdly  at  AUhallows  Mass  after  Easter;  and 
let  each  gild-brother  have  two  sesters  of  malt,  and  each  young 
man'  one  sester,  and  a  sceat  of  honey  ;  and  let  the  mass-priest  at 
each  of  our  meetings  sing  two  masses,  one  for  our  living  friends, 
the  other  for  the  dead :  and  let  each  brother  of  common  condition 
sing  two  psalters  of  psalms,  one  for  the  living  and  one  for  the 
dead ;  and  at  the  death  of  a  brother,  each  man  six  masses,  or  six 
psalters  of  psalms ;  and  at  a  death,  each  man  five  pence  ;  and  at 
a  houseburning  each  man  one  penny.  And  if  any  one  neglect  the 
day,  for  the  first  time  three  masses,  for  the  second  five,  and  at  the 
third  time  let  him  have  no  favour,  unless  his  neglect  arose  from 
sickness  or  his  lord's  need.  And  if  any  one  neglect  his  subscrip- 
tion at  the  proper  day  let  him  pay  double.  And  if  any  one  of  this 
brotherhood  misgreet  another,  let  him  make  boot  with  thirty 
pence.  Now  we  pray  for  the  love  of  God  that  every  man  hold 
this  meeting  rightly,  as  we  rightly  have  agreed  upon  it.  God 
help  us  thereunto." 

THE  GUILD  AT  CAMBRIDGE. 

"  In  this  writ  is  the  notification  of  the  agreement  which  this  bro- 
therhood hath  made  in  the  thanes'  gild  of  Grantabrycg.  That  is 
first,  that  each  gave  oath  upon  the  relics  to  the  rest,  that  he  would 
hold  true  brotherhood  for  God  and  for  the  world,  and  all  the  bro- 
therhood to  support  him  that  hath  the  best  right.  If  any  gild- 
brother  die,  aU  the  gildship  is  to  bring  him  where  he  desired  to 
lie ;  and  let  him  that  cometh  not  thereto  pay  a  sester  of  honey ; 
and  let  the  gildship  inherit  of  the  dead  half  a  farm,  and  each  gild- 
brother  contribute  two  pence  to  the  alms,  and  out  of  this  sum  let 
what  is  fitting  be  taken  to  St.  ^6elt5ry^.  And  if  any  gild-brother 
have  need  of  his  fellows'  aid,  and  it  be  made  known  to  the  reeve 
nearest  the  gild  (unless  the  gild-brother  himself  be  nigh)  and  the 

'  The  meaning  of  cniht  is  not  certain  in  this  passage.     It  may  imply  a 
eerTant,  but  1  think  it  more  likely  that  merely  young  freemen  are  intended, 
who  were  not  fuU  citizens,  and  were  therefore  not  reckoned  fuU  gegyldan. 
VOL.  I.  2  L 


614  APPENDIX  D. 

reeve  neglect  it,  let  him  pay  one  pound ;  if  the  lord  neglect  it,  let 
him  pay  a  pound,  unless  he  be  on  his  lord's  need  or  confined  to 
his  bed.  And  if  any  one  steal  from  a  gild-brother,  let  there  be  no 
boot,  but  eight  pounds.  But  if  the  outlaw  neglect  this  boot,  let 
all  the  gildship  avenge  their  comrade ;  and  let  all  bear  it,  if  one 
misdo ;  let  all  bear  alike.  And  if  any  gild-brother  slay  a  man, 
and  if  he  be  a  compelled  avenger  and  compensate  for  his  insult, 
and  the  slain  man  be  a  twelve-hundred  man,  let  each  gild- 
brother  assist if  the  slain  be  a  ceorl,  two 

ores ;  if  he  be  a  Welshman,  one  ore.  But  if  the  gild-brother 
with  folly  and  deceit  slay  a  man,  let  him  bear  his  own  deed ;  and 
if  a  comrade  slay  another  comrade  through  his  own  folly,  let  him 
bear  his  breach  as  regards  the  relatives  of  the  slain  ;  and  let  him 
buy  back  his  brotheihood  in  the  gild  with  eight  pounds,  or  lose 
for  ever  our  brotherhood  and  friendship.  And  if  a  gild-brother 
eat  or  drink  with  him  tliat  slew  his  comrade,  save  in  the  presence 
of  the  king,  the  bishop  or  the  ealdorman,  let  him  paj'  a  pound,  un-  - 
less  he  can  clear  himself  with  two  of  his  dependents,  of  any  know- 
ledge of  the  fact.  If  any  comrade  misgreet  another,  let  him  pay 
a  sester  of  honey,  except  he  can  clear  himself  with  his  two  de- 
pendents. If  a  servant  draw  a  weapon,  let  his  lord  pay  a  pound, 
and  recover  what  he  can  from  the  servant,  and  let  all  the  company 
aid  him  to  recover  his  money.  And  if  a  servant  wound  another, 
let  the  lord  avenge  it,  and  the  company,  so  that  seek  what  he  may 
seek,  he  shall  not  have  his  life.  And  if  a  servant  sit  within  the 
spence,  let  him  pay  a  sester  of  honey,  and  if  any  one  hath  a  foot- 
sitter  let  him  do  the  same.  And  if  any  gild-brother  die  or  lie 
sick  out  of  the  country,  let  his  gild-brethren  fetch  him  alive  or 
dead,  to  the  place  where  he  desired  to  lie,  under  the  same  penalty 
as  we  have  before  said,  in  case  of  a  comrade's  dying  at  home,  and 
a  gild-brother  neglecting  to  attend  the  corpse." 


The  following  document,  which  seems  justly  referable  to  the 
reiffn  of  Eadga'r,  that  is  to  the  close  of  the  tenth  century,  gives 
the  regulations  under  which  the  Hundred  was  constituted'. 
'  Thorpe,  i.  258,  etc. 


CORPOKATE  EXISTENCE.  616 

"  This  is  the  Ordinance  how  the  Hundi'ed  shall  he  held. 

"Pirst  that  they  meet  every  four  weeks,  and  that  each  man  do 
right  to  other. 

"  That  a  thief  be  pursued,  if  necessary.  If  there  bo  present  need, 
let  it  be  told  to  the  hundredman,  and  let  him  afterwards  make  it 
known  to  the  tithingmen,  and  let  them  all  go  forth  whither  God 
may  direct  them  to  their  end :  let  them  do  justice  on  the  thief  as 
it  was  formerly  Eadmund's  law.  And  be  the  cedpgild  paid  to 
him  that  owns  the  chattel;  and  be  the  rest  divided  in  two,  half  to 
the  hundred,  half  to  the  lord,  except  men ;  and  let  the  lord  take 
possession  of  the  men. 

"  And  if  any  man  neglect  this,  and  deny  the  judgment  of  the 
hundred,  and  the  same  be  afterwards  proved  against  him,  let  him 
pay  to  the  hundred  thirty  pence ;  and  the  second  time,  sixty 
pence ;  half  to  the  hundred,  half  to  the  lord.  If  he  do  it  a  third 
time,  let  him  pay  half  a  pound  :  the  fourth  time,  let  him  lose  aU 
that  he  hath,  and  be  an  outlaw,  unless  the  king  will  allow  him  to 
remain  in  the  land. 

"  And  we  have  ordained  respecting  unknown  cattle,  that  no  man 
should  have  it  without  the  witness  of  the  hundredman  or  the 
tithingman ;  and  that  he  be  a  well  trusty  man ;  and  unless  he 
have  one  or  other  of  these,  let  no  vouching  to  warranty  be  allow- 
ed him '. 

"  "We  have  also  ordained,  that,  if  the  hundred  pursue  a  track 
into  another  hundred,  notice  be  given  to  the  hundredman,  and 
that  he  then  go  with  them.  If  he  neglect  this,  let  him  pay  thirty 
shillings  to  the  king.  ., 

'-  If  any  one  flinch  from  justice  and  escape,  let  him  that  had  him 
in  custody  pay  the  angild.  And  if  he  be  accused  of  having  aided 
the  escape,  let  him  clear  himseH  according  to  the  custom  of  the 
country. 

"  In  the  hundred  as  in  every  other  gem6t,  we  ordain  that  folk- 
right  be  pronounced  in  every  suit,  and  that  a  term  be  appointed 

'  Compare  the  farther  proTisions  of  Eadgir's  law.  Supp.  11.  §  6,  7,  8,  9, 
10,  U.    Thorpe,  i.  274,  276. 

2  l2 


516.  APPENDIX  D. 

when  it  shall  be  fulfilled.  And  if  any  one  break  that  term,  un- 
less it  be  through  the  lord's  decree,  let  him  make  amends  with 
thirty  shillings,  and  on  a  set  day  fulfil  that  which  he  should  have 
done  before. 

"  An  ox's  bell,  and  a  dog's  collar,  and  a  blast  horn,  each  of  these 
three  shall  be  worth  a  shilling,  and  each  is  reckoned  an  informer. 

"  Let  the  iron  for  the  threefold  ordeal  weigh  three  pounds  ;  and 
for  the  single,  one  pound." 


51/ 


APPENDIX  E. 

The  following  documents  throw  light  upon  the  nature  of  Lsen- 
land,  and  the  conditions  under  which  it  was  held.  The  first  is  a 
detailed  account  given  by  Oswald,  bishop  of  Worcester,  to  king 
Eadgdr,  of  the  plan  which  he  adopted  in  leasing  the  lands  of  his 
church  :  it  is  reprinted  here  from  the  sixth  volume  of  the  Codex 
Diplomaticus,  No.  1287.  The  second  is  a  statement  of  the  way 
in  which  an  estate  of  six  ploughlands  at  Wouldham  in  Kent  be- 
came the  property  of  the  Cathedral  at  Eochester :  it  is  No.  1288 
in  the  same  collection. 

"Domino  meo  karissimo  regi  Anglorum  Eadgaro,  ego  Osuualdus 
TJuigornensis  aecclesiae  episcopus  omnium  quae  mihi  per  ipsius  cle- 
mentiam  munerum  tradita  sunt,  apud  deum  et  apud  homines  gra- 
tias  ago.  Igitur  si  dei  misericordia  suppeditet,  coram  deo  et  homi- 
nibus  perpetualiter  ei  fldelis  permanebo,  reminiscens  cum  gratiarum 
aotione  largifluae  benignitatis  eius,  quia  per  meos  illud  quod  mag- 
nopere  expetebam  mihi  concessit  internuntios,  id  est  reverentissi- 
raum  Dunstanum  archiepiscopum  et  venerandum  jESeluuoldum 
Uuintoniae  episoopum  et  virum  magnifioum  BrihtnoSum  comitem, 
quorum  legatione  et  adiutorio  meam  et  sanctae  dei  aecclesiae  que- 
relam  suscepit,  et  secundum  consiHum  sapientum  et  principum 
suorum  iuste  emendavit,  ad  sustentamen  aecclesiae  quam  mihi 
benigne  et  libens  regendam  commisit.  ftuare  quo  modo  fldos  mihi 
subditos  telluribus  quae  meae  traditae  sunt  potestati  per  spatium 
temporis  trium  hominum,  id  est  duorum  post  se  haeredum,  con- 
donarem,  placuit  tam  mihi  quam  ipsis  fautoribus  et  consiliariis 
meis,  cum  ipsius  domini  mei  regis  licentia  et  attestatione,  ut  fratri- 


618  APPENDIX  E. 

bus  meis  suooessoribus,  scilicet  episcopis,  per  cyrographi  cautionem 
apertius  enuclearem,  ut  sciant  quid  ab  eis  extorquere  iuste  debeant 
secuadum  conventionem  cum  eis  faotam  et  sponsionem  suam ;  unde 
et  banc  epistolam  ob  cautelae  causam  componere  studui,  ne  quis 
malignae  cupiditatis  instinctu  hoc  sequenti  tempore  mutare  volena, 
abiurare  a  servitio  aecolesiae  queat.  Haeo  itaque  conventio  cum 
eis  facta  est,  ipso  domino  meo  rege  annuente,  et  sua  attesta- 
tione  munificentiae  suae  largitatem  roborante  et  confirmante,  om- 
nibusque  ipsius  regiminis  sapientibus  et  principibus  attestantibus 
et  consentientibus.  Hoc  pacto  eis  terras  sanctae  aecclesiae  sub 
me  tenere  concessi,  hoc  est  ut  omnis  eqnitandi  lex  ab  eis  impleatur 
quae  ad  equites  pertinet ;  et  ut  pleniter  persolvant  omnia  quae  ad 
ius  ipsius  aecolesiae  iuste  competunt,  scilicet  ea  quae  Anglice 
dicuuturciricsceottettoUidest  theloneum  et  tace,idest  swinsceade, 
et  caetera  iura  aecclesiae,  nisi  episcopus  quid  alicui  eorum  perdo- 
nare  voluerit ;  seseque  quamdiu  ipsius  tei-ras  tenent  in  mandatis 
pontificis  humiliter  cum  omni  subiectione  perseverare  etiam  iure- 
iurando  affirment.  Super  haec  etiam  ad  omnis  iudustriae  episcopi 
indigentiam  semetipsos  praesto  impendant ;  equos  praestent ;  ipsi 
equitent ;  et  ad  totum  piramiticum  opus  aecclesiae  calcis  atque  ad 
pontis  aediflcium  ultro  inveniantur  parati ;  sed  et  venationis  sepem 
dominiepiscopi  ultronei  ad  aedificandumrepperiantur,suaque  quan- 
documque  domino  episcopo  libuerit  venabula  destinent  venatum ; 
insuper  ad  multas  alias  indigentiae  causas  quibus  opus  est  domino 
antistiti  sepe  frunisci,  sive  ad  suum  servitium  sive  ad  regale  ex- 
plendum,  semper  illius  archiductoris  dominatui  et  voluntati  qui 
episcopatui  praesidet,  propter  beneflcium  quod  illis  praestitum  est, 
cum  omni  humilitate  et  subiectione  subditi  fiant,  secundum  ipsius 
voluntatem  et  terrarum  quas  quisque  possidet  quantitatem.  De- 
curso  autem  praefati  temporis  curriculo,  videlicet  duorum  post  eos 
qui  eas  modo  possident  haci-edum  vitae  spatio,  in  ipsius  antistitis 
sit  arbitrio  quid  inde  velit,  et  quomodo  sui  vello  sit  inde  ita  stet, 
sive  ad  suum  opus  eas  retinere,  si  sic  sibi  utile  iudicaverit,  sive  eas 
alicui  diutius  praestare,  si  sic  sibi  placuerit  velit ;  ita  dumtaxat  ut 
semper  aecclesiae  servitia  pleniter  ut  praefati  sumus  inde  per- 
solvantur.    Ast  si  quid  praefatorum  delicti  praevaricantis  causa 


L^'NLAND.  519 

defuerit  iurum,  praevarioationis  delictum  secundum  quod  praesulis 
ius  est  emendet,  aut  iUo  quod  antea  potitus  est  dono  et  terra  careat. 
Si  quis  vero,  diabolo  instigante,  quod  minima  optamus,  extiterit, 
qui  per  nostrum  benefioium  aeoolesiam  dei  fraude,  seu  in  sua  poa- 
sessione  aut  servitio  debito  privare  temptaverit,  ipse  nostra  omni- 
que  benediotione  dei  et  sanctorum  eius  privetur,  ni^si  profundissima 
emendatione  illud  corrigere  studeat  et  ad  pristinum  statum  quod  de- 
frandavit  redigat,  soriptum  est  enim  '  Eaptores  et  saorilegi  regnum 
dei  non  consequentur.'  Nunc  autem  propter  deum  et  sanctam 
Mariam,  in  cuius  nomine  boo  monasterium  dioatum  est,  moneo  et 
praeoipio,  ut  nullo  modo  quis  boc  praevarioare  audeat,  sed  siout  a 
nobis  statutum  est,  ut  praefafci  snmus,  perpetualiter  maneat.  Qui 
custodierit  omiii  benediotione  repleatur ;  qui.veroinfringerit,  male- 
dioetur  a  domino  et  ab  omnibus  Sanctis,  Amen.  Gratanter,  reve- 
rentissime  domine,  quo  tantis  tuae  donis  clementiae,  secundum  quod 
totius  creatoris  oosmi  est  velle,  praeditus  sum,  meae  operam  volun- 
tatis, ut  pro  te  tuisque  deum  iugiter  interpellem,  devotus  impen- 
dam,  meosque  suecessorcs  ad  hoc  bortari  studebo,  ut  domini  mise- 
ricordiam  pro  te  deprecari  non  desiuant,  ut  Cbristus  pace  qui  per- 
henni  regnat  etbrali  in  arce  te  consortio  dignum  baberi  dignetur 
sanctorum  omnium  in  aula  coelesti.  Valeat  in  aevum  qui  boc 
studuerit  servare  deoretum.  Harum  textus  epistolarum  tres 
sunt  ad  praetitulationem  et  ad  signum,  una  in  ipsa  civitate  quae 
vooatur  Unigraceaster,  altera  cum  venerabili  Dunstano  archie]ii- 
scopo  in  Cantuaria,  tertia  cum  ^Seluuoldo  episcopo  in  Uuintonia 
civitate." 


"^i5elbrybt  cine  bit  gebocode  "  King  ^Selberht  granted  it 

Sim  apostole  on  ece  yrfe  and  by  bis  charter  for  ever  to  the 

bet^hte  hit  Sim  biscope  Ear-  apostle,  and  gave  it  in  charge  to 

dulfe  to  bewitenne  and  his  mi-  bishop  Eardwulf  and  his  suc- 

tergaencan.  Di  betweonan  Sim  cessors.    However  in  process  of 

wearS  hit  ute,  and  hoefdon  hit  time  it  became  alienated,  and 

cynegas  oS  Eadmund  cine ;  Si  the  kings  had  it  down  to  Ead- 


520 


APPENDIX  E. 


gebohte  hit  jElfstan  Heahstdn- 
inc  set  Ssem  cince  mid  hund- 
twelftigan  maneesan  goldes  and 
Srittigan  pundan,  and  Sset  him 
sealde  m^st  eal  -lElf  eh  his  sunu. 
JEfter  Eadmunde  cincge  Sa  ge- 
bocode  hit  Eadred  cinc^lfstane 
on  ece  yrfe :  Sa  sefter  ^Ifstanes 
dsege  wees  ^Ifeh  his  sunu  his 
yrfewserd ;   and  Sset  he  ledo  on 
hdlre  tungon,  and  ofteah  ^1- 
frice  his  bre8er  landes  and  sehta, 
btitanhehwaet  sethimgeearnode. 
Da  for  S£6re  broSorsibbe  geuiSe 
he  him  EarhitSes  and  CrSegan 
and  ^nesfordes  and  Wulda- 
hames  his    dseg.     Da   oferbdd 
JElfeh  Ssene  broSor  and  feng  to 
his  Ifgne  :  t5a  hffifde  jiElfrio  suna 
Eadric  hatte  and  ^Ifeh  n£enne, 
Dd  geut5e  iElfeh  Sdm  Eadrice 
EdrhiSes  and  Cr^gan  and  "Wul- 
dahames,    and   hsefde    himsylf 
^nesford.     Da  gewat  Eadric 
&TC  -(Elfeh  cwideleas,  and  ^Ifeh 
feng   to   his   l£ene.     Dd  hsefde 
Eddrio  lafe  and  nan  bedrn ;  Sd 
geuSe  JElfeh  hire  hire  morgen- 
gife  setCrgegan;  and  stddEarhiS 
and  Wuldaham  and  Lytlanbroc 
onhisl^ne.  DdhimeftgeSuhte, 
Sd  nam  he  his  feorme  on  Wul- 
daham and  onSdm  6&an  wolde, 
ac  hine  geyflade,  and  he  Sa  saende 
to  Sdm  arcebiscope  Dunstdne, 


mund;    then  ^Ifstdn   son   of 
Hedhstdn  bought  it  of  the  king 
for  a  hundred  and  twenty  man- 
cuses  of  gold  and  thirty  pounds, 
and  j3Elf  heah  his  son  gave  him 
nearly  all  the  money.     After 
king  Eddmund,  king  Eddred 
booked  it  to  ^Ifstdn  as  an  in- 
heritance for  ever :  now  after 
^Ifstdn's  day,  Jjllf  hedh  his  son 
was  his  heir,  and  that  he  proved 
with  a  whole  tongue,  and  de- 
prived ^Ifri'o  his  brother  both 
of  land  and  chattels,  but  what 
he  might  deserve  at  his  hands. 
Now  for  brotherly  love  he  grant- 
ed him  Erith,  Cray,  jEnesford, 
and   "Wouldham,   for  his   life. 
Then^lf  heah  survived  his  bro- 
ther, and  re-entered  on  his  l^n ; 
but  ^Ifrio  had  a  son  called 
Eddrio,  and  ^Lfhedh  had  none. 
Then  ^Ifhedh  granted  to  Eddric 
Erith,   Cray,   and  Wouldham, 
and  kept  JEnesford  for  himself. 
Now  Eadric  died  before  JElf- 
hedh  without  making  a  will, 
and^lfhedh  re-entered  on  his 
l^n.     Eddric  had  a  vsddow  but 
no  child ;  then-Sillfhedh  granted 
her  her  morning -gift,  at  Cray ; 
and  Erith,  Wouldham  and  Lit- 
tlebrook  stood  on  his  l^n.  When 
he  bethought  him,  he  took  his 
feorm  at  Wouldham,  and  meant 


LiE'NLAND. 


521 


and  lie  com  to  Soylfe  to  Mm  : 
and  he  cwseS  Ms  cwide  beforan 
Mm,  and  he  saette  ^nne  cwide 
to  Cristes  cyrican,  and  oSerne  to 
sancte  Andrea,  andSane  Jjiiddan 
sealde  Mslafe.  Da  brsec  sy^6an 
Leofsnnu  Jiurh  Saet  wlf  'Se  he 
ndm,  Eadrices  lafe,  ^aene  cwide, 
andTierewade  ^aes  arcebiscopes 
gewitnesse,  rid  Sa  innon  Sa  land 
mid  Sam  wife  biitan  witena 
dome.  Daman^setSambiscope 
ciSde,  'Si  gel^dde  se  biscop 
ahnunga  eaUes  ^Ifehes  cwides 
to  Eirhi'Se,  on  gewitnesse  jElf- 
stanes  bisoopes  on  Lundene,  and 
eaUes  Saes  hiredes,  and  Saes  aet 
Cristes  cyrican,  and  6aes  biscopes 
jElfstanes  an  Hrofesceastre, 
and  Wulfsies  preostes  Sebs  sci- 
rigmannes,  and  Bryhtwaldes  on 
MsereweorSe,  and  ealra  East 
Cantwarena  and  "West  Cantwa^ 
rena.  And  hit  wses  gecnsewe  on 
SuS-Sedxan  and  onWest-Seaxan 
and  on  Middel-Seaxan  and  on 
Est-Seaxan,  Saet  se  arcebiscop 
mid  Msselfes  a8e  geahnode  Gode 
and  sancte  Andrea  mid  Sam  bo- 
can  on  Cristes  hrode,  Sa  land 
Se  Leofsnnu  him  toteah.  And 
Saene  £S  ndm  Wulfsige  se  sci- 
rigman,  Sa  he  nolde  to  Saes 
cinges  handa ;  and  Ssere  wses 
God  edoa  ten  hundan  mannan 
8e  Sane  £S  sealdan. 


so  to  do  at  the  other  places,  but 
he  feU  iU,  and  sent  to  arch- 
bishop Diinstan,  and  he  came 
to  him  at  ScyM:  and  jELEheah 
declared  Ms  will  before  him, 
and  he  deposited'  one  will  at 
Christohurch,  another  at  St. 
Andrews,  and  the  third  copy  he 
gave  Ms  widow.  But  afterwards 
Leofsunu  broke  through  the 
will,  through  the  wife  he  mar- 
ried, namely  Eadrio's  widow, 
and  set  at  nought  the  arch- 
bishop's testimony,  and  rode  in 
upon  the  land  with  the  woman, 
without  any  judgment  of  the 
witan.  Now  when  tMs  was  re- 
ported to  the  bishop,  he  took 
all  the  claims  of  owersMp  un- 
der ^Ifheilh's  will,  to  Erith,  in 
witness  of  ^Ifstan  bishop  of 
London,  and  all  the  convent, 
.and  that  at  Christohurch,  and 
JElfstan  bishop  of  Eoohester, 
and  Wulfsige  the  priest  who 
was  sheriff,  and  Bryhtwald  of 
Mereworth,  and  aU  the  men  of 
East  Kent  and  of  West  Kent. 
And  it  was  well  known  in  Sus- 
sex and  Wessex,  and  Middlesex 
and  Essex,  that  the  archbishop 
with  his  own  oath  upon  the 
cross  of  Christ,  recovered  the 
land  which  Leofsunu  had  in- 
vaded, together  with  the  books, 
for  God  and  St.  Andrew.    And 


C22 


APPENDIX  E. 


Rubric.  Diis  wslron  Sa  seox 
sulung  8Bt  WuldahJim  sancte 
Andrea  geseald^  into  Hrofes- 
osastie." 


Wulfsige  thesheriff  received  the 
oath,  since  he  would  not  go  to 
the  king's  hand :  and  there  was 
a  good  addition  of  a  thousand 
men  who  gave  the  oath. 

Rubric.  Thus  were  the  six 
ploughlands  atT^'ouldham  given 
to  St.  Andrew  at  Eochester." 


APPENDIX   F. 

HEATHENDOM. 

The  following  passages  of  the  Anglosaxon  Laws  contain  general 
enactments  agaiast  heathen  practices,  or  references  to  heathen 
superstitions. 

"  Gif  ceorl  buton  wifes  wi'sdome  deoflum  gelde,  he  sie  ealra  his 
^hta  scyldig,  and  healsfange.  Gif  butwu  deoflum  gelda^,  sion 
hdo  healsfange  scyldigo,  "j  ealra  £5hta." — LI.  Wihtr.  §  12.  Thorpe, 
i.  40. 

"  Gif  feow  deoflum  geldaS  .vi.  scill.  gebete,  oWe  his  h^d." — 
LI  Wihtr.  §  13.  Thorpe,  i.  40. 

"  Gif  hwa  Cristendom  wj^rde,  o^Se  hseSendom  weorSige,  wordes 
oSSe  weorces,  gylde  swa  wer  swa  wite,  swa  lahslite,  be  Sam  'Se  seo 
d^d  s^."—Eddw.  Qu^S.  §  2.  Thorpe,  i.  168. 

"  Gif  wiccan  o^e  wiglcras,  mansworan  oSSe  morSwyrhtan, 
oSSe  file,  dfj/lede  Sebsere  horcwenan  ahwar  on  lande  witrSan 
^gytene,  'Sonne  f  J'sie  hi  man  of  earde  "j  clsensie  Sa  J;e6de,  oSSe  on 
earde  forfare  hy  mid  ealle,  biiton  hi  geswican  "j  Se  deoppor  gebe- 
tan."— &'fZw.  Qu'^.  §  11.  Thorpe,  i.  172. 

"  Ond  we  cwSedon  be  'S'sem  wiccecrseftum,  "j  be  liblacum,  "J  be 
morSdsedum,  gif  man  Sser  acweald  w^re,  "]  he  his  setsacan  ne 
mihte,  Sset  he  beo  his  feores  scyldig." — Jl^eht.  i.  §  6.  Thorpe, 
i.  202. 

"  Da  ?'e  mansweriaS  "]  lyblac  wyrca'??,  sfn  hi  a  fram  Selcum 
Godes  d.kle  aworpene,  buton  by  to  rihtre  dsedbdte  gecyrran." — 
Eddm.  i.  §  6.  Thorpe,  i.  246. 


524  APPENDIX  F. 

"  And  gif  wiocan  ffS^e  wigleras,  scincrseftigan  o'SSe  horcwenan, 
morSwyrlitarL  oWe  mansworan  ahwar  on  earde  wurSan  dtigene, 
fyae  hi  man  georne  ut  of  Sysan  earde,  "j  olEensige  S^s  J^eode,  oS^e 
on  earde  forfare  hi  mid  ealle,  biitan  hi  geswican  ^  3e  deoppor  ge- 
'heta.n.."—JE^elr.  vi.  §  7.  Thorpe,  i.  316.  Cnut,  ii.  §  4.  Thorpe, 
i.  378, 

"  And  we  forbeodaS  eornostlice  Selene  hseSenscipe.  H£eSen- 
scipe  his  Saet  man  idola  weorSige,  Sset  is  Sffit  man  weorSige  hse- 
Sene  godas  ■]  sunnan  oSSe  monan,  f^r  o'SrSe  flod,  weeterwyUas  o'SSe 
stanas,  oSSe  jeniges  cynnes  wudutreowa,  o'SSe  ■wiccecraeft  lufige, 
o'SSe  morWerc  gefremme,  on  Senige  wisan,  ffS^e  on  hlote,  o^e 
on  fyrhte,  oSSe  on  swylcra  gedwimera  tenig  J^ing  dre6ge." — Onut, 
ii.  §  5.    Thorpe,  i.  378. 

"  Si  quis  veneno,  vel  sortilegio,  vel  invnliuaoione,  seu  maleficio 
aliquo,  faciat  homicidium,  sive  illi  paratum  sit,  sive  alii,  nihil 
refert,  quin  factum  mortiferum  et  nuUo  mode  redimendum  sit." — 
LI.  Hen.  I.  Ixxi.  §  1. 


The  well-  and  tree-worship  noticed  in  these  laws  continued  to 
he  retained,  though  in  a  somewhat  altered  form,  until  a  very  late 
period  ;  and  especially  it  was  usual  to  perform  religious  ceremo- 
nies at  the  salt-springs,  spots  always  looked  upon  as  holy'. 

The  confessional  however  was  more  likely  to  he  in  the  secret  of 
the  popular  heathendom  than  the  civil  legislator.  Accordingly 
the  Poenitentials  supply  us  with  a  variety  of  information  upon  this 
subject.  The  Poenitential  of  Theodore  has  a  long  chapter  devoted 
to  the  heathen  practices  of  communicants,  and  their  appropriate 
penances. 

"  xxvii,  De  Idolatria  et  SacrUegio,  et  qui  Angelos  colunt,  et 
malefieos,  Ariolos,  Veneficos,  Sortileges,  Divinos,  et  vota  reddentes 
nisi  ad  aecclesiam  Dei,  et  in  Kalendas  Januarii  in  cervulo  et  in 
vitula  vadit,  et  Mathematicos,  et  Emissores  tempestatum." 

'  Thorns,  Aneod.  and  Traditions,  p.  93.     The  holy  character  of  the  salt- 
springs  is  noticed  by  Tacitus. 


HEATHENDOM.  526 

The  points  principally  noted  here  are,  Bacriflcing  to  dsemons,  that 
is,  the  ancient  gods ;  eating  and  drinking  near  heathen  temples, 
fana,  in  honour  of  the  god  of  the  place  ;  or  eating  what  has  been 
sacrificed  to  daemons ;  or  celebrating  festal  meals  in  the  abominable 
places  of  the  heathen' ;  seeking  auguries  by  the  flight  of  birds, 
making  philacteries  or  philtres.  Other  forms  may  be  gathered 
from  the  following  heads  : — 

Si  quis  maleficio  suo  aliquem  perdiderit  vii.  annos  poeniteat. 
Si  quis  pro  amore  veneficus  sit  et  neminem  perdiderit,  etc.  Si 
autem  per  hoc  mulieris  partum  quis  deoeperit,  etc.  Si  quis  ari- 
olos  quaerit,  quos  divinos  vooant,  vel  aliquas  divinationes  fecerit, 
quia  et  hoc  daemoniacum  est,  etc.  Si  quis  sortes  habuerit,  quas 
Sanctorum  contra  rationem  vooant,  vel  aliquas  sortes  habuerit, 
vel  qualiounque  malo  ingenio  sortitus  fuerit,  vel  -divinaverit,  etc. 
Si  qua  mulier  divinationes  vel  incantationes  diabolicas  fecerit,  etc. 
Si  qua  mulier  filium  suum  vel  flliam  super  tectum  pro  sanitate  po- 
suerit,  vel  in  fornace,  etc.  Qui  grana  arserit  ubi  mortuus  est  homo, 
pro  sanitate  viventium  et  domus,  etc.  Si  quis,  pro  sanitate  filioli, 
per  foramen  terrae  exierit,  iHudque  spinis  post  se  conoludit,  etc. 
Si  quis  ad  arbores,  vel  ad  fontes,  vel  ad  lapides,  sive  ad  cancellos, 
vel  ubicunque,  excepto  in  aecclesia  Dei,  votum  voverit  aut  exsol- 
verit,  etc.,  et  hoc  sacrilegium  est  vel  daemoniacum.  Qui  vero 
ibidem  ederit  aut  biberit,  etc.  Si  quis  in  Kalendas  Januarii  in  cer- 
vulo  aut  vetula  vadit,  id  est,  in  ferarum  habitus  se  communicant', 
et  vestiunturpeUibuspecudum,  et  assumunt  capita  bestiarum;  qui 
vero  taliter  in  ferinas  species  se  transformant,  etc.,  quia  hoc  daemo- 
niacum est.  Si  quis  mathematicus  est,  id  est,  per  invooationem 
daemonum  hominis  mentem  converterit,  etc.  Si  quis  emissor  tem- 
pestatis  fuerit,  id  est,  maleficus,  etc.  Si  quis  ligaturas  fecerit,  quod 
detestabile  est,  etc.  Qui  auguria  vel  divinationes  in  consuetudine 
habuerit,  etc.  Qui  observat  divinos,  vel  praecantatores,  philacteria 
etiam  diaboUca,  et  somnia  vel  herbas,  aut  quintam  feriam  honore 
Jovis,  vel  Kalendas  Januarii,  more  paganorum,  honorat,  etc.    Qui 


'  Refer  to  Gregory's  letter,  cited  at  p.  332  of  this  volume. 
Probably  "  commutant." 


626  APPENDIX  F. 

Btudent  exercere  quando  luna  obsouratur,  lat  clamoribus  suis  ac 
malefioiis  saorilego  usu  earn  defendere  confldunt,  etc.  Qui  in  ho- 
nore  lunae  pro  aliqua  sanitate  ieiunat,  etc. 

Other  fragments  of  Theodore  contain  this  additional  provision: — 

"Qui  nocturna  sacriflcia  daemonum  celebraverint,  velincanta- 
tionibus  daemones  invocaverint,  capitc  puniantur." 

Archbishop  Ecgberht  has  further  details  :  he  says' : — 

"  Si  quis  daemonibus  oxigni  quid  immolaverit,  annum  umim 
ieiunet.  Quiounque  cibum  daemonibus  immolatum  cnmederit,  etc. 
Quicunque  grana  combusserit  in  loco  ubi  mortuus  est  homo,  pro 
sanitate  viventium  et  domus,  etc.  Si  mulier  filiam  suam  super  do- 
mum,  vel  in  fornace  posuerit,  eo  quod  eam  a febri  sanare  Telit,"  etc. 

The  Saxon  version  in  the  MS.  at  Brussels,  applies  this  to  other 
illness  besides  fever  :  "  Gif  hwylc  wif  seteS  hire  beam  ofer  hrof 
o8be  on  ofen,  for  hwylcere  untrymtSe  hielo  .vii.  gear  faeste." 

The  same  prelate  in  his  Poenitential  ordains  ^ : — 

"  Gif  ^nig  man  oSerne  mid  wiccecrsefte  fordo,  fseste  .vii.  gear," 
etc. 

"  Gif  hwd  drife  stacan  on  denigne  man,  fseste  .iii.  gear,  and  gif 
Be  man  for  8^re  stacunge  dead  biS,  Sonne  fseste  he  .vii.  gear,  eal- 
swa  hit  her  bufpon  awriten  is  '\" 

This  "  stacan  drifan  "  or  "  stacung  "  is  the  invultuatio  ■which 
has  been  explained  in  the  text,  and  of  which  an  example  has  been 

^  Confessionale,  32,  33  ;  see  also  his  Poenitential  e,  ii.  22,  23.  Thorpe,  ii. 
157,  190. 

"  Poenit,  IT.  16,  17,  18,  19,  20.     Thorpe,  ii.  208,  210. 

'  This  is  repeated  in  the  same  words  in  the  collection  called  Canons  enacted 
under  king  Eadgar,  in  that  portion  entitled  "  Modusimponendi  poenitentiam." 
But  as  Dr.  Kunstman,  an  authority  of  the  highest  character  on  this  point,  in- 
forms me,  these  Canons  are  founded  upon  and  contain  portions  of  the  very  an- 
cient Poenitential  of  Cummianus;  and  we  may  suppose  Ecgberht  to  have 
adopted  these  passages  from  him. 


HEATHENDOM.  527 

given  from  a  charter  of  Eadgar.     Mr.  Thorpe's  explanation  of 
Staoimg  is  as  follows  : — 

"  Stacung,  a  sticking.  The  practice  of  sticking  pins  or  needles 
into  a  waxen  image  of  the  person  against  whom  the  ■witchcraft 
was  directed,  consisted  probahly  at  first  in  sticking  them  actnaUy 
into  the  body  of  the  individual,  '  gif  hwa  drife  stdcan'  on  Senigne 
man ;'  but  aa  this  process  was  no  doubt  sometimes  attended  with 
inconvenience  and  danger  to  the  operator,  the  easier  and  safer 
method  was  devised  of  substituting  a  waxen  proxy,  instead  of  the 
true  man.  This  pract'ce  was  known  under  the  name  otchjixio, 
'  quod  eiusmodi  incantores  acus  subinde  dejigerent  in  imagines 
cereas,  iis  loois  quibus  viros  ipsos  pungere  decreverant,  qui  punc- 
turas  ipsas,  ac  si  ipsi  pungerentur  persentiebant.'  Du  Cange.  To 
it  Ovid  alludes : 

'  Devovit  absentes,  simulacraque  cerea  flngit, 
Et  miserum  tenues  in  iecur  urget  acus.'  " 

Eogberht  thus  continues  respecting  philtres  and  other  magical 
practices : — ■ 

"  Gif  hwa  wiccige  ymbe  Eeniges  mannes  lufe,  "j  him  on  sete 
sylle  otS8e  on  drinoe,  o66e  on  aeniges  cynnes  gealdorcrseftum,  gset 
hyra  lufu  forSon  Se  mdre  beon  scyle,"  etc' 

"  Gif  hwa  hlytas  ot5Se  hwatunga  bega,  otSBe  his  wseccan  set 
Eenignm  wylle  hajbbe,  oS8e  let  Senigre  ogre  gesceafte  butan  set 
Godes  cyricean,  fseste  he  .iii.  gear,"  etc. 

"  WIfman  beo  Saes  ylcan  wyr?Se,  gif  heo  tilaS  hire  cilde  mid 
sSnigum  wicceersefte,  oS6e  set  wega  gel^ton  Surh  Sa  eoiSan  tihS  : 
eala  tSaet  is  mycel  hdeSenscipe." 

The  Canons  enacted  under  E^dgdr  give  the  following  full  de- 
tails of  popular  heathendom^ :  — 

"  And  we  enjoin,  that  every  priest  zealously  promote  Christianitj', 

'  Repeated  in  nearly  the  same  words  in  the  '  Modus  imponendi  poeniten- 
tiam,'  §  39.    Thorpe,  ii,  274. 

'  Thorpe,  ii.  2-19,  "  And  we  Iterati  ISset  preosta  gehwilc  criBtendc'm  georallce 
4r£ere,  -j  selcne  hffijendom  mid  ealle  adwasce,  -j  forbedde  ■wilweor'Sunga  -j 


628  A.PPENDIX  F. 

and  totally  extinguish  every  heathenism ;  and  forbid  well- worship- 
pings, and  necromancies,  and  divinations,  and  enchantments,  and 
man- worshippings,  and  the  vain  practices  which  are  carried  on  with 
various  speUs,  and  with  '  frithsplots,'  and  with  elders,  and  also 
with  various  other  trees,  and  with  stones,  and  with  many  various 
delusions,  with  which  men  do  much  of  what  they  should  not." 

Many  of  these  heathen  practices  stLU  continue  to  subsist,  at 
least  in  the  memory  and  traditions  of  the  peasantry  in  remote  parts 
of  England.  Devonshire,  for  example,  stUl  oifers  an  unexhausted 
field  for  the  collecter  both  of  popular  superstitions  and  popular 
tales,  counterparts  of  which  are  current  in  Germany.  The  Anglo- 
saxon  herbals '  furnish  various  evidences  of  heathendom  connected 
with  plants,  but  I  pass  over  these  in  order  to  give  one  or  two  de- 
tailed Saxon  spells,  which  are  of  the  utmost  value,  as  bearing  un- 
mistakeable  marks  of  Anglosaxon  paganism.  The  following  spells 
are  taken  from  a  MS.  in  the  Harleian  collection.  No.  585. 

1.  "  Wis  Cyrnel.  Neogone  w^ran  NoSpaes  sweoster,  fa  wurdon 
Sa  nygone  to  viii.  ~j  fa  viii.  to  vii.  "J  fa  vii.  to  vi.  "J  fa  vi.  to  v.  "] 
fa  V.  to  iiii.  1  fa  iiii.  to  iii.  "J  fa  iii.  to  ii.  "j  fa  ii.  to  i.  *]  fa  i.  to 
nanum.  fis  f e  libbe  cyrnneles  'j  scrofeUef  "j  weormef  'j  Seghwylces 
yfeles.  Sing  benedicite  nygon  sif  um  ^." 

2  "  Se  wifman  se  hire  cUd  afedan  ne  m£eg,  gange  to  gewitenes 
mannes  birgenne  "]  staeppe  Sonne  f riwa  ofer  Sa  byrgenne,  "j  cweSe 
Sonne  f  riwa  Sas  word  :  Dis  me  to  bote  S^re  laSan  Isetbyrde :  Dis 

Hcwiglunga  -j  hwata  -j  galdra  -j  manweorSunga  -j  6a  gemearh  8e  man  drifiS 
on  mislicum  gewiglungum,  ■]  on  frlSsplottum,  -j  on  ellenum,  -j  eao  on  dSrum 
mislicum  treowum,  -j  on  stanum,  •}  on  manegum  mislicum  gedwimerum  ^ 
mon  ondre6ga6  fela  Saes  6e  hi  na  ne  sooldon." 

A  various  reading  adds : — "  treowwurSunga  *]  st^nwur^unga  •)  6one  de6fles 
crseft  Sse'r  man  Sa  cild  furh  Sa  eoiSan  tihS,  ~j  Sa  gemear  Se  man  drihS  on 
geares  niht :" — **  tree-worshippings  and  stone- worshippings,  and  that  devil's 
craft,  whereby  children  are  drawn  through  the  earth,  and  the  vain  practices 
which  are  carried  on  on  the  night  of  the  year."  The  frSSsplot  was  a  patoh  or 
plot  of  ground  sanctified,  ^'e/rsSorf,  by  some  heathen  ceremony,  a  kind  of  Taboo. 

'  Edited  by  the  Eev.  T.  O.  Cockayne  for  the  Master  of  the  Eolls'  Series, 
18647-1866,  under  the  title  of  "  Leechdoms,  Wortounning  and  Starcraft  of 
Early  England."  ^  j'oj  ^c)^ 


HEATHENDOM.  629 

me  to  bote  8sere  swEeran  swsert  byrde  :  Dis  me  to  bote  tSdere  MSan 
lambyrde.     And  Sonne  tSset  wif  se6  mid  bearne,  "j  heo  to  hire 
hldforde  on  reste  ga,  Sonne  cweSe  heo  : 
"  Up  ic  gonge, 

ofer  Se  staeppe, 

mid  cwioan  cilde, 

nalaes  mid  cwellendum, 

mid  fulborenum, 

nalaes  mid  f^gan. 

And  Sonne  seo  moder  gefele  Seet  Sset  beam  si  cwie,  g&  Sonne  to 
cyrican,  "j  Sonne  heo  toforan  San  weofode  cume,  cweSe  Sonne  : 

"  Criste  ic  ssSde 
Sis  gec^^ed." 

3.  "Se  wifman  se  hyre  beam  dfedan  ne  meege,  genime  heo  sylf 
hyre  agenes  cUdes  gebyrgenne  dsl,  frjj  eefter  ^on  on  bldce  wuUe, 
-j  bebioge  to  cepemannum, "]  cwe^e  'Sonne  : 

"  Ic  hit  bebicge 
ge  hit  bebicgan, 
Sas  Bweartan  wulle 
and  Sisse  sorge  com." 

4.  "  Se  [wif|man  se  Se  [ne]  msege  beam  dfedan,  nime  Sonne  dnes 
bleos  cu  meoluc  on  hyre  handse,  'j  gesupe  Sonne  mid  hyre  muSe, "] 
gange  Sonne  to  yrnendum  waetere,*]  spiwe  Sder  in  Sa  meolc,  "j  hMde 
Sonne  mid  Ssere  ylcan  hand  Saes  waeteres  muS  fulne  'j  forswelge. 
CweSe  Sonne  Sas  word  :  Gehwer  ferde  ic  me  Sone  mteran  maga 
fihtan,  mid  Sysse  m£eran  mete  fihtan,  Sonne  ic  me  wiUe  habban  T 
hdm  gan.  Donne  heo  to  San  broce  ga,  Sonne  ne  beseo  heo  no,  ne 
eft  Sonne  heo  Sanan  ga,  "j  Sonne  ga  heo  in  oSer  htis  dSer  heo  ut 
ofedde,  "J  S^r  gebyrge  metes'." 

5.  "  Wis  hors  oman  ^  mannes,  sing  Sis  friwa  nygan  siSan  on 
sefen  "]  on  morgen,  on  Saes  mannes  hedfod  tifan,  "j  horse  on  Saet 

1  MS.  Harl.  585.  fol.  196.  196  b. 
VOL.  I.  2  M 


630  APPENDIX  F. 

wynstre  e&re,  on  ymendum  wsetere,  "j  wend  Sset  heafod  ongean 
stream.  In  domo  mamosin  in  choma  meoti.  otimimeoti.  quod 
dealde  otuuotiua  el  marethin.  Crux  mihi  vita.  e.  tibi  mors  inimici. 
alfa  et  o  initium  et  finis,  dicit  dominus'." 

6.  "  "Wis  Oman.  Genim  ane  grene  gjrrde,  "j  last  sittan  Sone  man 
on  piiddan  huaes  flore,  "j  bestric  hine  jmbutan,  "j  cweS  :  0  pars  et 
o  rilli  A  pars  et  pars  iniopia.  e.  alfa  et  o.  iitium'." 

7.  "Gif  "wsennas  eglian  msen  eet  tS^re  heortan,  gange  mieden  man 
t6  -wyUe  6e  riht  e^st  yrne,  "]  -gehlade  dne  cuppan  fuUe  for8  mid 
Sam  stredme,  "j  singe  Sieron  Credan  "j  Paternoster,  "j  ge6t6  Sonne 
on  oSer  fset,  "j  blade  eft  oSre,  "j  singe  eft  Credan  "J  Paternoster,  "J 
do  swd,  tSset  Su  hsebbe  free.  Do  s-wa  nygon  dagas  :  sona  him  biS 
seP." 

8.  "  Wits  fserstice,  Feferfuige,  and  seo  reside  netele,  8e  Surb  sern 
inwyxS,  and  wegbrSede  :  wylle  in  buteran. 

"  Hlude  w^ron  by  la  hlude 
8^  by  ofer  Sone  hlse-w  ridan  ; 
w^ron  anmode,  Sa  by 
ofer  land  ridan. 
Scyld  8u  Se  nu,  tSu  8isne  niS 
genesan  mote. 
Ut  lytel  spere, 
gif  ber  iane  sie ! 
Stod  under  linde, 
under  leohtum  seylde, 
S^r  Sa  mibtigan  wif 
byra  msegen  berSeddon, 
and  by  gyUende 
gdras  ssendan  : 
ic  him  oSeme 
eft  ■wiUe  ssendan, 
fledgende  fldne 

MS.  Harl.  No.  585.  fol.  197.        »  Ibid.  fol.  197         '  Ibid.  fol.  SCO. 


HEATHENDOM.  63L 

foraae  togeanes. 

Ut  lyfcel  spere, 

gif  hit  her  inae  s^  ! 

Sast  smrS,  sloh  seax  lytel, 

I'serna  wund  swiSe. 

Ut  lytel  spere, 

gif  her  inne  sy  ! 

Syx  smiSas  ssetan, 

waelspera  worhtan ; 

ut  spere,  nses  in  spere, 

gif  her  inne  sy 

isenes  d^l, 

hsegtessan  geweorc, 

hit  sceal  gemyltan  : 

gif  Su  w£ere  on  fell  sooten, 

oTOe  wSere  on  flsesc  sooten, 

o^e  wSere  on  blod  sooten, 

oWe  wiere  on  IrS  scoten, 

nsefre  ne  s^  tSin  lif  atsesed  ; 

gif  hit  w^re  esa  gescot, 

oSSe  hit  "wEere  ylfa  gescot, 

o56e  hit  w^ere  hsegtessan  gescot ; 

nu  ic  wille  Sin  helpan  ! 

Dis  Se  to  bote  esa  gescotes, 

Sis  Se  to  bote  ylfa  gescotes, 

8is  Se  to  bote  haegtessan  gescotes  ! 

Ic  Sin  wille  helpan. 

Fled  pf  on  fyrgen  ! 

heafde  halwes  tu ! 

Helpe  Sin  drihten  ! 

Nim  Sonne  Sset  seax,  ado  on  waetan^" 

9.  "Her^  is  seo  hot,  hu  Su  meaht  Sine  eeceras  betan,  gif  hi  neUaS 

wel  wexan,  oSSe  S^er  hwilc  ungedefe  fing  ongeddn  biS,  on  dr^ 

oS'Se  on  liblace. 

'  MS.  Harl.,  No.  585,  fol.  186. 

"  MS.  Cott.,  Caligula,  A.  Tii.,  fol.  171  a ;  Cookayne,  i.  398. 


532  APPENDIX  F. 

"  Genim  iSonne  on  niht,  £er  hyt  dagige,  feower  tyrf  on  feower 
healfa  ■gaea  landes,  and  gemearoa  hu  hi  &r  stodon.  Nim  Sonne 
ele  and  hnnig  and  beorman,  and  ^Ices  feos  meolc,  8e  on  Ssem 
lande  si,  and  Selces  treowcynnes  dsel,  t5e  on  ^dem  lande  si  gewexen, 
butan  heardan  bedman,  and  delcre  namcuSre  wyrte  dsel,  bufcan 
glappan  ^non  :  and  do  ?5onne  halig  wseter  S^ron,  and  dr5rpe  Sonne 
friwa,  on  Sone  staSol  Sara  turfa,  and  oweSe  Sonne  Sas  word : 
Crescite,  wexe,  et  multipUcamini,  and  gemsenigfealda,  et  replete, 
and  gefylle,  terre,  ^ds  eor^an,  in  nomine  patris  et  Jilii  et  spiritus 
sancti,  sit  henedicti ;  and  pater  noster,  swa  oft  swi  Sset  oSer ; 
and  bare  siSSan  Sa  turf  to  cyrcean,  and  msesse  preost  asinge  feower 
msessan  ofer  San  turfon,  and  wende  man  Sset  grene  to  Sam  weo- 
fode  ;  and  siSSan  gebringe  man  Sa  turf  S^r  hi  £er  w£eron,  £er  sun- 
nan  setlgange ;  and  hsebbe  him  geworht  of  cwiobedme  feower 
Cristes  m^lo,  and  ^write  on  ^Icon  ende  Mattheus  and  Mareus, 
Lucas  and  Johannes.  Lege  Sset  Cristes  mdel  on  Sone  pyt  neoSe- 
weardne ;  cweSe  Sonne :  Crux  Mattheus,  Crux  Mareus,  Crux 
I/ucas,  Crux  Sc's  Johannes.  Nim  Sonne  Sa  turf  and  sette  S^r 
ufon  on,  and  cweSe  Sonne  nigon  siSon  Sfe  word,  Crescite,  and  swa 
oft.  Pater  noster;  and  wende  Se  Sonne  eastweard,  and  onlut nigon 
siSon  eadmodlioe,  and  cweS  Sonne  Sas  word : 

"  eastweard  ic  stande, 
arena  ic  me  bidde  : 
bidde  ic  'Sone  mjeran  diie, 
bidde  Sone  miolan  drihten, 
bidde  ic  Sone  haligan 
heofonrfces  weard : 
eorSan  ic  bidde 
and  up  heofon, 
and  Sa  soSan 
sancta  Marian, 
and  heofones  meaht 
and  heah  reced, 
Saet  ic  mote  Sis  gealdor, 
mid  gife  drihtnes, 
tdSum  ontynan. 


HEATHENDOM.  533 

Surh  trumne  gepanc, 

dweccan  Sas  wsestmas  us 

to  woruld  nytte, 

gefylle  Sas  foldan 

mid  faeste  geleafan, 

wlitigigan  Sas  wancg  turf; 

swa  se  witega  cwieS, 

'Seet  se  hsefde  dre  on  eo^rice 

se  Se  eelmyssan 

dselde  ddmlice, 

drihtnes  );ances. 

"  Wende  Se  Sonne  f  riwa  sunganges,  astrecee  [Se]  Sonne  on  and- 
lang,  and  arim  S^r  Letanias,  and  cweS  Sonne,  Sanctus,  sanctus, 
sanetiis,  oS  ende.  Sing  Sonne  Benedicite  ajjenedon  earmon,  and 
Magnificat,  and  Pater  noster  iii,  and  bebeod  hit  Criste  and 
sancta  Marian,  and  Ssere  talgan  rode,  to  lofe  and  to  -weorSinga, 
and  Sdm  [to]  afe  -Se  Sset  land  Age,  and  eallon  Sam  Se  him  under- 
feodde  synt. 

"  Donne  Sset  eall  sie  gedon,  Sonne  nime  man  uncuS  ssed  set 
selmesmannum,  and  selle  him  twa  swyle  swylce  man  set  him  nime 
and  gegaderie  ealle  his  sulhgetedgo  tdgsedere :  borige  Sonne  on 
Sam  beame  stor  and  finol  and  gehalgode  sapan,  and  gehalgod 
sealt.    Nim  Sonne  Sset  s£ed,  sete  on  Sees  sules  bodig.    CweS  Sonne  : 

"  Erce,  Erce,  Erce, 
eorSan  mddor, 
geunne  Se  se  alwealda 
ece  drihten, 
secera  wexendra 
and  wridendra 
edcniendra 
and  elniendra : 
soeafta  hen 
se  scire  wsestma, 
and  SSre  bradan 
here  waestma, 


534  APPENDIX  F. 

and  SSere  hwitaii 

hw^te  waestma, 

and  ealra 

eortSan  wsestma, 

Geunne  him 

ece  drihten, 

and  his  halige  8e 

on  heofenum  sint, 

'Stet  ^is  yrS  si  gefriSod  wvS  ealra 

feonda  gehwJene, 

and  heo  si  geborgen  wiS  ealra 

bealwa  gehwylc, 

Sdra  lyblaca 

geond  land  sawen. 

Nu  ic  bidde  ^one  waldend 

86  Se  6as  weoruld  gesceop, 

Sset  ne  si  nan  to  6aes  cwidol  wif, 

ne  to  Sees  craeftig  man, 

iSset  awendan  ne  msege 

worud  8us  gecwedene. 

"  Donne  man  Sa  sulh  for8  drife  and  Sa  forman  furh  onsdedte, 
cweS  Sonne  : 

"  Hal  -wes  Sii,  Polde, 
fira  modor ! 
beo  'Su  growende 
on  Godes  fseSme, 
fodre  gefylled, 
firum  td  nytte ! 
"  Nim  Sonne  ielces  cynnes  melo,  and  dbacae  man  innewerdne 
handa  br^ne  hlaf,  and  gecned  hine  mid  meolce  and  mid  halig- 
waetere,  and  lecge  under  8a  forman  furh.     CweSe  Sonne : 
"  Ful  secer  fddres 
fira  cinne 
beorht  blo-wende, 
Su  gebletsod  weorS 


HEATHENDOM.  635 

SsBS  taligan  noman 

tSe  8ds  heofon  gesce6p, 

and  "Sia  eorSan 

Se  we  on  lifiaS. 

Se  god  se  Sas  grundas  geworhte, 

geunne  us  grovende  gife, 

SsBt  us  eorna  gehwylc 

cume  to  nytte. 

"  Cwe^S  Sonne  ];riwa  Crescite  in  nomine  Patris  sit  benedicti. 
Amen :  and  Pater  noster  friwa." 

The  greater  number  of  these  pieces  will  be  found  printed  very 
carefully  from  the  MSS.,  and  translated  into  English,  intheEev. 
0.  Cockayne's  LeecMoms. 


END  OF  THE  PIRST  VOLUME. 


Printed  by  Taylor  and  Francis,  Bed  Lion  Court,  Fleet  Street